UNIVERSITY OF GHANA FACTORS INFLUENCING SOCIAL MEDIA UTILIZATION AS A COMMUNICATION TOOL IN THE GHANAIAN HOTEL INDUSTRY BY ADOMAKO KANKAM, WILLIAM (10442532) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THEUNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OFMPHIL MARKETING DEGREE JUNE, 2015 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ii DECLARATION I do hereby declare that this work is the result of my own research and has not been presented by anyone for any academic award in this or any university. All references used in the work have been fully acknowledged. I bear the sole responsibility for and shortcomings. ………………………….…………. …………………………….. ADOMAKO KANKAM, WILLIAM DATE (10442532) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iii CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that this thesis was supervised in accordance with procedures laid down by the University of Ghana. ……………………………….. ………………………. DR. KOBBY MENSAH DATE (SUPERVISOR) ………………………………….. ……………………… PROFESSOR ROBERT EBO HINSON DATE (CO-SUPERVISOR) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iv DEDICATION I dedicate this thesis to Eld. Dr. E.YTweneboah-Koduah and Mrs. BenedictaOyeTweneboah- Koduah for their love, endless support and encouragement. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh v ACKNOWLEDGEMENT To God be the Glory, I have completed writing this thesis but of course with the help and support from wonderful peoples around me. First and foremost, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisors Dr.KobbyMensah and Prof. Robert Ebo Hinson for their professional guidance and support in academic and in real life. I am very much indebted to their patience and invaluable advices that inspired me to see things positively. My sincere thanks to all my friends and colleagues for their cheerfulness and fun. Thank you for the great moments that we have shared together especially Agana, Atsu, Joshua, Edem,Shamsudeen, Jared and all the 2015 MPhil family (Marketing). To my late parents who did not live to witness my graduation, I say may your souls rest in perfect peace. Special thanks to my family for their continuous support and encouragement especially to Francis, Michael, Agyei, Perpetual and AmaSaah. Last but not the least, my profound gratitude to Ruth Asarewhose co-operation, prayers and moral support encouraged me on to finish this work. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vi ABSTRACT This study sought to find out the factors influencing social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry among the star-rated hotels. The study adopted cross-sectional approach to solicit the views of 127 hotel managers. The study employed simple random and purposive sampling techniques. Structured questionnaire with closed-ended questions were used. In all 30 star-rated hotels within Greater Accra were targeted for the study. Even though, the results revealed that Ghanaian hotels are present on social media, overall their use is basic. Most of the hotels suffer from low levels of visibility, activity and engagement.Regression analysis from the study revealed that, the parameter estimates of COST, CULTURE, HUMAN SKILLS and IT INFRASTRUCTURE were significant predictors of social media utilization. However, COMPETITION and MANAGERIAL STYLE were not significant predictors of social media utilization. These estimates had p-values greater than 0.05 but this study sees positive relation between the two factors and the level of usage as generally informative.Hotels managers who seek to utilize social media as a marketing communication tool, should take critical attention to investing into IT infrastructure, training of staff in IT related issues and engaging customers to increase the visibility of hotels on social media channels.They also need to take more definitive action in order to fully exploit the potential social media as a communication tool. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ....................................................................................................................... ii CERTIFICATION ................................................................................................................... iii DEDICATION .......................................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ......................................................................................................... v ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................................. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER ONE ...................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................... 1 1.0 Background of the Study ................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................................ 3 1.2 Research Objectives ........................................................................................................ 6 1.3 Research Question .......................................................................................................... 6 1.4 Significance of the Study ................................................................................................ 6 1.5. Scope of the Study .............................................................................................................. 8 1.6. Disposition of the Study.................................................................................................. 8 CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................... 10 LITERATURE REVIEW ..................................................................................................... 10 2.2 Social Media Definitions .............................................................................................. 11 2.3 Web 2.0 tools ................................................................................................................ 14 2.3.1 User Participation ...................................................................................................... 15 2.3.2 Power of Long Tail ................................................................................................... 16 2.3.3 Personalization of the Web Resources ...................................................................... 17 2.3.4 Perpetual Beta Release .............................................................................................. 18 2.3.5 Deployment of Rich Applications ............................................................................. 18 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh viii 2.3.6 Syndication of Information and Services .................................................................. 19 2.4 Information and Communication Technologies and Tourism ...................................... 20 2.5 Social Media as a Communication Tool ....................................................................... 21 2.6 Benefits and Negatives of Social Media utilization ...................................................... 24 2.7 Social Network Sites ..................................................................................................... 27 2.7.1 Twitter (Microblogging) ........................................................................................... 27 2.7.2 Facebook ................................................................................................................... 29 2.7.3 YouTube .................................................................................................................... 31 2.7.4 Flickr ......................................................................................................................... 31 2.7.5 LinkedIn .................................................................................................................... 32 2.7.6 The Conceptual Framework ...................................................................................... 34 2.8.0 Social Media Utilization............................................................................................ 34 2.8.1 Cultural factors .......................................................................................................... 35 2.8.2 Human Skills ............................................................................................................. 36 2.8.3 Cost Factors ............................................................................................................... 36 2.8.4 ICT Infrastructure ...................................................................................................... 37 2.8.5 Managerial Style ....................................................................................................... 38 2.8.6 Competition ............................................................................................................... 38 CHAPTER THREE ............................................................................................................... 40 CONTEXT OF THE STUDY ...............................................................................................40 3.1 Technology Penetration in Ghana ................................................................................. 40 3.2 Policy Environment ...................................................................................................... 42 3.3 The Creation of Duopoly .............................................................................................. 42 3.4 Establishment of National Communication Authority ................................................. 42 3.5 Internet Penetration ....................................................................................................... 43 3.6 Mobile Telephony ......................................................................................................... 45 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ix 3.7 Mobile Market .............................................................................................................. 46 3.8 The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) .................................................................................. 47 3.8.1 The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) ...................................................................... 47 3.8.2 The Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) ............................................................. 48 3.8.3 Ghana Hotel Association ........................................................................................... 48 3.8.4 Contribution of the Tourism Sector .......................................................................... 50 3.8.5 Overview of Tourism in Ghana ................................................................................. 52 CHAPTER FOUR ..................................................................................................................55 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .........................................................................................55 4.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................55 4.1 The Purpose of the Research..............................................................................................55 4.2 Research Approach ............................................................................................................55 4.3 Research Design.................................................................................................................56 4.4 Target Population ...............................................................................................................57 4.5 Sources of Data and Data collection Method ....................................................................58 4.6 Questionnaire .....................................................................................................................58 4.7 Pre-Test ..............................................................................................................................59 4.8 Sample................................................................................................................................60 4.9 Data Analysis .....................................................................................................................61 4.9.0 Regression analysis .........................................................................................................61 4.9.1 Assumptions ....................................................................................................................61 4.9.2 Variables .........................................................................................................................62 4.9.3 Model specification .........................................................................................................63 4.9.7 Frequency Tables and Histograms ..................................................................................64 4.9.8 Limitation of the study ....................................................................................................65 CHAPTER FIVE ...................................................................................................................66 DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION ..............................................................................66 5.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................66 5.1 Varimax Rotation and Reliability of the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) ............. 67 5.2 Reliability of the Dependent Variable .......................................................................... 69 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh x 5.3 Regression Analysis ...................................................................................................... 69 5.4 Model Diagnosis ........................................................................................................... 71 5.5.1 Normality Test........................................................................................................... 71 5.5.2 Heteroskedasticity Test ............................................................................................. 72 5.6 Discussion of Major Findings ....................................................................................... 77 CHAPTER SIX ......................................................................................................................82 SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .......................................82 6.1 Summary .....................................................................................................................82 6.2 Conclusions.................................................................................................................83 6.3 Recommendations .......................................................................................................85 References .........................................................................................................................87 Appendix 1: Questionnaire ....................................................................................................103 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xi LIST OF TABLES Table 2. 1: Ghana‘s internet usage as against its‘ population growth from 2000 to 2011 ...... 45 Table 4.2: Assumptions in Linear Regression ........................................................................ 64 Table 5.3: Reliability of scales for dependent variables .......................................................... 69 Table 5.4: Regression Model for the factors influencing social media utilization .................. 71 Table 5.5 Heteroskedasticity Test: White ............................................................................... 72 Table 5.6: Assessing the Level of Correlation between Variables .......................................... 72 Table 5. 7: Extent of social media utilization as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel ......... 73 Table 5.8: Presence of hotels on the social media platforms ................................................... 74 Table 5.9:Level of social media utilization in the hotel industry ............................................ 74 Table 5.10: The level of engagement on social media platforms ............................................ 75 Table 5.11: The most frequently used social media network for social media campaigns .... 76 Table 5.12: Outcomes of social media utilization ................................................................... 77 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.0 Background of the Study The hotel industry is known to be the driving force of tourism development worldwide (Akyeampong, 2007). Thus it is not surprising that Ghana is now experiencing gradual proliferation of international hotel chains, small independent hotels from the bulk of the hotel stock (Akyeampong, 2007; Mensah, 2009). Akyeampong (2007) and Mensah (2009) argue that Accra, the national capital of Ghana is experiencing rapid rise in the number of hotels being developed to cater for international arrivals. Ghana Tourist Board (2010) reports that the number of international arrivals into the country increased from 583,821 in 2004 to 698,069 in 2008.In 2013, 1,087,000 tourists visited Ghana (WTTC, 2014).The number of registered hotels in the Greater Accra Region alone at the time grew by 23.2% from 1,295 to 1,595 (Ghana Tourist Board, 2008). In this fast changing business environment where modern hotel chains operate, the main goal of the business is to concentrate on improving services to end users, and enhance the business process quality (Milovic, 2012). In today‘s competitive world, businesses need to think of new ways to make their business processes more flexible to avoid being placed at a competitive disadvantage (Leung &Bai, 2013; Pearson, 2013). This could be done through information technology initiatives that can reduce cost of internal or in-house operations and generate a competitive advantage (Teixeira, 2014). Pearson (2013) argues that organizations that can adapt to trends, preferences and issues ahead of their competitors can create a defensible advantage. Peter Weill, Director of the Center for Information Systems Research, said that: ―In today‘s globalized, free-market environment, the ability to satisfy customer expectations is core to profitability (Teixeira, 2014). If you are not agile, you cannot do it, University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2 because customer expectations are never static.‖ Pearson (2013) explains that social media offers organizations a platform to improve the communications supporting process. This has led to leading organizations using the power of social media to shape their business process management agendas (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2010). For example Dell, iGoogle, Google Calendar, Google Reader, Whole Foods Market, Best Western, Marriott and Hilton Hotels are using social media to communicate with their publics (O‘connor, 2011).According to Leung and Bai, (2013), the emergence of Web 2.0 allows internet users to create, edit, share, and view information online. This phenomenon has led to the popularity of social media channels such as; Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, blogs and forums (Leung &Bai, 2013). Social media is changing the lifestyle of all age groups and across all social economic groups (Lewis, 2010; Assenov&Khurana, 2012). Sotiriadis and Van Zyle (2013),assert that in recent times the online social media have revolutionized communications and consequently the marketing of tourism destinations and businesses. The area is rapidly evolving and the challenges and opportunities arising from it for tourism industry are already apparent (Leung &Bai, 2013). Electronic word-of-mouth and online reviews are increasingly used regarding tourism services that are high involvement services (Sotiriadis& Van Zyle, 2013). Social media has become the focus of much attention from the business environment as one of the ways to create awareness of their product or services and to build long term mutual relationship with the customers (Sullivan, 2013). This study sought to find out the factors that influence the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry, to determine the extent of use of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry and again, the outcomes of utilizing social media as communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana.Many companies have their presence on social media sites and mostly their websites are linked to a range of social media sites- University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 3 Twitter, Facebook and others (Leung &Bai, 2013). With the explosion in the usage of social media by travellers and their willingness to freely post updates to their friends, relations and people with like-minded regarding their experiences (Aggarwal, 2011). It would be suicidal to ignore the potential of incorporating social media into your communication with customers and potential clients (Sullivan, 2013; Leung &Bai, 2013). This development is not an exception in developing countries especially with the steady growth in internet literacy and internet penetration rate.Most businesses have used varying approaches in incorporating social media into their overall marketing strategies which have led to many successful attempts (Kaplan &Haenlein 2011). Kaplan and Haenlein (2011), explain that social media can be used for marketing communication by companies. For example Google has separate account for its major products (iGoogle, Google Calender and Google Reader) to update followers about new developments (Leung &Bai, 2013). Again, Whole Foods Market utilizes social media to broadcast information about special promotions, product recalls and health tips (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2011). 1.1 Statement of the Problem With the advent of social media, it is no longer enough for businesses in tourism and hospitality industry to rely exclusively on traditional media for marketing communication (Leung, Law, Van Hoof &Buhalis, 2013). However, only a few businesses are exploring the full potential of the social media to communicate with stakeholders or access feedback from them (O‘Connor, 2011). According to Ab Hamid, Razak, Akhir, and Cheng (2013), the advent of social media and web 2.0 tools have changed the way customers seek information for their purchase decisions. The mobility and how time is scarce for today‘s consumers, traditional mode of communication is no longer sustainable, hence the appropriateness of social media as a communication tool (Poalses&Joubert, 2014; Teixeira, 2014). Again, the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 4 cost of advertising is increasingly rising and consistently in the past decades and consumers are devoting less attention to traditional advertising due to advertising clutter, distrust and media proliferation (Poalses&Joubert, 2014; Teixeira, 2014). In view of these challenges, Mahmood (2012) argues social media platform offers the most flexible interactive exchanges between organizations and their publics as the most cost- effective marketing communication tool today. In spite of the growing use of the social media and web 2.0 tools among consumers, it appears the hotels are not utilizing social media as a marketing communication tool (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2010; Aggarwal, 2011). As O‘Connor (1999) argues the hotels are not harnessing the full potential of social media; even when present on social media channels their use is very basic. That is hotels are thus, missing out on valuable opportunities to interact and engage with customers (O‘Connor, 1999). Though, hotel facilities are found in multiple social media channels, they are suffering from low level of visibility, activity and engagement and need to take substantial action if they are to fully exploit the potential of Social Media. This assertion was confirmed by O‘Connor (2011) in an observational study to assess the presence, visibility, activity and engagement of the top fifty international hotel brands on four major Social Media channels-Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr. The study revealed that major hotel chains are present on a variety of Social Media channels, overall their use of Social Media is basic (O‘Connor, 2011). With a few exceptions (The exceptions are Marriott, with over 56,000 Twitter Followers, and Hilton, Sheraton, Embassy Suites and Best Western with over 47,000, 46,000, 31,000 and 20,000 Facebook Fans respectively) (Aggarwal, 2011). Most of the hotels suffer from low levels of; visibility, activity and engagement. Even when present, the visibility of hotel brands within Social Media channels is low (O‘Connor, 2011). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 5 The most recent study on social media in Ghana is from Boateng (2014) which revealed that MTN Ghana and Vodafone Ghana have employed social media to manage customer knowledge. Besides the study by Boateng (2014) no single study has addressed the issue of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry. By way of academic contribution the study sought to fill the gap in literature as far as the Ghanaian hotel industry and social media adoption as communication tool is concerned. The study investigated the factors that influence the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana. The impact of the social media as a communication tool has received much attention from several scholars. The development of internet technology led to social media (West & Turner, 2008) that enables travellers to use various online platforms during each stage of their consumption process (Gretzel&Fesenmaier, 2009). The increased fragmentation of media and customers, as well as the revolution introduced in mass communication by the new communication channels – internet and mobile communication technologies – has called for the need for a new approach to marketing communication (Gretzel&Fesenmaier, 2009; Lewis, 2010; O‘Connor, 2011; Kavanaugh, Yang, Sheetz, Li, & Fox, 2011; Leung et al. 2013; Sotiriadis& Van Zyle, 2013). Quite a number of studies have recounted the importance of social media as a marketing communication tool.These studies focus mostly on Europe, Asia and America with a handful of studies from African context.For example (Kavanaugh et al., 2011; Sotiriadis& Van Zyle, 2013) are the studies on social media from the African perspective. In terms of methodology, most of the literature focused on qualitative study, with central focus on organization‗s perspective. There is a limited quantitative empirical study regarding social media and its incorporation into marketing communications. This study therefore sought to fill the gap in literature so far as issue, method and context are concerned. That is to say social media issue is limited in literature especially in the Ghanaian context. The study employed use quantitative method approach to analyse the results. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 6 1.2 Research Objectives 1. To determine the extent of social media utilization as a marketing communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. 2. To determine the factors influencing the utilization of social media as marketingcommunication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. 3. To determine the outcomes of utilizing social media as marketingcommunication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. 1.3 Research Question 1. What is the extent of social media utilization as a marketing communication tool in the hotel industry? 2. What factors influence the utilization of social media as a marketingcommunication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry? 3. What are the outcomes of utilizing social media as a marketingcommunication tool in the hotel Ghanaian industry? 1.4 Significance of the Study A review of the literature shows that studies on social media have mainly been conducted in developed economies. For example, the following studies have been on the developed economies: Kelly (2008); Pugh (2010); Mabry (2010); Ahlberg (2010); Fridolf&Arnautovic (2011); Cox (2012). However, as far as Ghana is concerned, limited research has been conducted in the area of social media. Social media have been used to solicit insights from customers about new product features thatcustomers may want MTN Ghana and Vodafone to add to their products and services (Boateng, 2014).Therefore, this study sought to focus on University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 7 the factors influencing the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana. It implies that, from an academic perspective, this study is very significant as it provides a range of baseline data for future research. Thus, this research serves as future reference for other social media researchers especially in the area of hospitality or the hotel industry in Ghana.The study also provides information on the current debate regarding the impact of social media on business performance (especially hotels). Research literature shows that, in recent years, business from all sectors of the economy rushed to join the online business community (Aggarwal, 2011). Many hospitality companies especially hotels have aggressively adopted the internet and by extension social media as another marketing tool. As of today, managers are still contemplating on the real benefits of adopting social media (O‘Connor, 2011). This study will be beneficial from a managerial perspective as this research will assist owners, managers and marketers of graded properties to have a better understanding of the benefits of adopting social media as communication tool in in the hotel industry. Practically, the findings of this study will be beneficial to hospitality properties in Ghana. Since this study sought to find out the factors influencing the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana, the findings of this study will also assist hospitality properties to recognise the factors which influence the success of social media marketing and revise their social media marketing strategies, where possible. Lastly, results of the study can help to put forth proposals on the benefits of social media marketing to the hospitality sector. Thus the findings of this study serve would inform decision makers on the value of social media as a communication tool. It would also furnish University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 8 firms in tourism and hospitality as well as firms of similar structure on how social media can be utilised for marketing purposes. 1.5. Scope of the Study The study is conducted within the hotel industry in the Greater Accra region. The study focuses on the factors that influence social media utilization as a marketing communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana. It also considers extent of use of social media as a marketing communication tool and the outcomes of utilizing social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry. 1.6. Disposition of the Study Chapter 1: Introduction The first chapter introduces background of the study, problem statement, research gap, research objectives and questions, hypothesis, significance of the study. Further, scope and disposition of the thesis are also presented. Chapter 2: Contextual of the Study This chapter will provide contextual background information of the study. The chapter will profile Ghana, the political and economic history of Ghana. The overview of the Ghana‘s Tourism sector, Ghana‘s Hotel sector profile, and impact of tourism on the Ghanaian economy is also covered. Chapter 3: Literature Review and Conceptual Framework This third chapter dealt with the review of existing literature to throw more light on the concepts of social media and its integration as a communication tool in the hotel industry. The review also involves the factors that influence social media adoption and use as a communication tool in the hotel industry. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 9 Chapter 4: Research Design and Methodology The fourth chapter provides information about the methods used in this thesis to provide a solution for the research questions posed earlier in this study. The methodology illustrates how necessary data is collected and the usage of the gathered data to answer the research questions. Chapter 5: Analyses of Data and Discussion This chapter will provide information on data analysis and discussion of the findings of the study. Chapter 6: Conclusion and Recommendations This chapter will deal with the summary of findings, conclusions and recommendations that will be drawn from the findings of the study. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 10 CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 Introduction 2.1 Social Pentration Theory The researcher adopted social penetration theory which describes the role of disclosure in relationship development, focusing specifically on how self-disclosure functions in developing relationships (Altman & Taylor, 1973; Carpenter & Greene, 2016). The onion model serves as a framework for describing the process of social penetration (Carpenter & Greene, 2016). In developing relationships, people use self-disclosure to increase intimacy including through breadth, depth, and the norm of reciprocity (Pan, Crotts&Sigala, 2012). Social penetration progresses through several stages to develop relationships. The theory also incorporates rewards and costs in relation to social penetration and has influenced the development of a number of theories in relationship development and information management (Altman & Taylor, 1973).Similar to social exchange theory, social penetration theory explains how human exchange forms relationships (Altman & Taylor 1973). However, the latter focuses more on the individual and dyadic levels while the former could explain behavior at aggregated and organizational levels. Social exchange theory states that human beings form close relationships through self-disclosure. Using an analogy of peeling of the layers in an onion, one must disclose him or herself through the continuing process of expose one's inner self and identity. It starts with public, visible, and superficial information, such as gender, clothing preferences, and ethnicity; slowly, as the relationship progresses, one starts to share his or her feelings; in the deepest level, one will expose his or her goals, ambition, and beliefs (Altman et al. 1981). In the social world online, we may be able to design social networks in a way to separate these different layers of information. By default, certain information will be disclosed to the public, while private and semi-private information could University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 11 be confidential; There might be ways to determine the levels of relationships from the mode and frequencies of communication, which could be all tracked online easily through online social media sites. A recent privacy lawsuit against Facebook highlighted the importance following the layered rules of social penetration in order (Gaudin 2010). 2.2 Social Media Definitions Andzulis, Panagopulos and Rapp (2012), define Social media as ―the technological component of broadcasting, transacting and relationship building functions of a business which leverages the network of customers and prospects to stimulate value co-creation.‖ Hanna, Rohm and Crittenden (2011) define social media as the creation, feeding and interchange of information through online social interactions and platforms. In a similar fashion Greenberg (2010) postulates that all customers are now ―social customers‖ and every interaction is part of a new collaboration between company and customer. Social media create opportunities for companies to tell their own stories (Ploof, 2009). Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) on their part contend that social Media is a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological grounds of web 2.0 and that allow the creation and exchange of user generated content. It consists of different Internet applications such as blogs, social networking sites, content communities, collaborative projects, virtual game worlds and social worlds (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2011). A common thread throughout Web 2.0 is putting web-based information in the hands of users, which they can use, edit, create and share as they so wish (Tredinnick, 2006). Stressing on Kaplan and Haenlein (2011) definition of social media,Berthon, Pitt, Plangger and Shapiro (2012) explain that, Social media is the product of Internet based applications that build on the technological foundations of Web 2.0. Eckler, Worsowicz and Rayburn University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 12 (2010) posit that Social media are forms of new media that eclipse the traditional static Web site and allow online users to interact with one another. Fotis, Buhalis and Rossides (2011), definesocial media as a group of online software platforms that enable and facilitate sharing of user generated content. Social media are applications that offer services to communities of on-line users: blogs, social bookmarking, wikis, media sharing, and social networks that promote collaboration, joint learning and the speedy exchange of information between users (Bonsón, Torres, Royo& Flores, 2012). Komito and Bates (2009) explain that Social media are internet applications that enable greater interaction between user and application through user generated content. According to AhlqvistBäck, Heinonen and Halonen (2010) their definition of social media is built on three key elements: content, communities and Web 2.0.First, content refers to user created content which may be of very different types. Second, social media is based on communities and social interaction among users. Rheingold (2010),argues that social media-networked digital media such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs and wikis-enable people to socialize, organize, learn, play and engage in commerce. This idea is supported by Tang and Liu (2011) and they see Social media, such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, BlogSpot, Digg, YouTube, and Flickr, have streamlined ways for people to express their thoughts, voice their opinions, and connect to each other anytime and anywhere. According to Naaman (2010), Social media channels are online sources of multimedia content posted in settings that foster significant individual participation and that promote community curation, discussion and re-use of content. Again, Social media can be described as internet and mobile-based tools and devices that incorporate technology, telecommunications and social interaction enabling the construction, co-construction and dissemination of arguments, images (static and moving) and audio (Dabner, 2012). Zeng, Chen,Lusch and Li (2010) postulate that Social media refers to a chatty, distributed mode of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 13 content generation, broadcasting and communication among communities. According to McGowan et al. (2012) social media websites and applications are online environments where users contribute, retrieve, and explore content largely generated by fellow users. Sweetser (2010) sees Social media as an increasingly popular means through which companies can communicate in online communities. Sui and Goodchild (2011) Social media can be defined as social interaction via the use of Web-based and mobile technologies, to turn scalable communication into interactive dialog. According to Howard and Parks (2012) Social media may be defined in three parts, consisting of (a) the information infrastructure and tools used to produce and distribute content; (b) the content that takes the digital form of private messages, news, thoughts and traditional products; and (c) the people, organizations, and industries that create and consume digital content (Howard & Parks, 2012). According to Aggarwal (2011) web-based social media systems such as blogs, wikis, media- sharing sites and message forums have become an important new way to convey information, engage in deliberations and form groups on the Internet. Their influence and effect is vital, to tens of millions of people providing content on a regular basis around the world (Finin et al., 2008). Fischer and Reuber (2011) note that Social media channels are user-friendly, inexpensive, scalable internet- and mobile based technologies that allow for the sharing of user-generated material. On their part Social media refers to a set of online tools that are designed for and centred on social interaction (Bertot, Jaeger, Munson, &Glaisyer, 2010). Yates and Paquette (2011) explain that social media consists of tools that enable open online exchange of information through conversation and interaction. However, Kietzmann, Hermkens, McCarthy, and Silvestre (2011) contend that social media employ mobile and web-based technologies to create highly interactive platforms via which individuals and groups exchange, co-create, deliberate and transform user-generated content. Greysen, Kind University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 14 and Chretien (2010), opine that social media are the content created by Internet users and hosted by popular sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Wikipedia and blogs. Bertot et al. (2010) say that social media are the content and interactions that are created through the social interaction of users via highly accessibly web-based technologies. Andzulis, Panagopulosand Rapp (2012) contend that engagement of, and collaboration with, customers as the key building blocks of social media. Consumers are rapidly adopting social networking sites, engaging in micro-blogging, and downloading applications for smartphones and computer tablets to enhance their social lives and promote sharing and communication with friends and family with the advent of social media (Andzulis, Panagopulos& Rapp, 2012). 2.3 Web 2.0 tools According to O‘Reilly (2005), Web 2.0 is the system as display place, covering all linked devices; Web 2.0 applications are those that make the most of the inherent gains of that platform: distributing software as a frequently modernized service that gets better the more people use it, using and reproducing data from different sources, including individual users, while providing their own data and services in a form that allows reproducing by others, creating network effects through user participation and going beyond the page symbol of Web 1.0 to provide rich user skills (O‘Reilly, 2005). Stern (2002), defines Web 2.0 as a term that describes the changing trends in the use of World Wide Web technology and Web design that aim to enhance creativity, secure information sharing, increase teamwork, and enhance the efficiency of the Web as we know it (Web 1.0). These have led to the development and evolution of Web-based communities and hosted services, such as social-networking sites – Facebook and MySpace, video sharing sites – YouTube; wikis and Twitter etc. (Stern, 2002). Also O‘Reilly (2005) uses Web 2.0 to describe a rapidly growing set of Web-based applications. Yesilada, Stevens, Goble, and Hussein, (2004), define Web 1.0 or the World University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 15 Wide Web (WWW), ―as an information space in which the substances of concentration, referred to as resources, are recognised by global identifiers called Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs). This also applies to Web 2.0 but the difference is that Web 1.0 was developed as a read media, where people were not able to publish anything and the content was static pages (Al-Khalifa & Al- Salman, 2006). Al-Khalifa and Al- Salman (2006) argue that, the web was mainly limited with the expertise of web developers and web designers. The subsequent logical shift was to make the Web more dynamic. This period was called Web 1.5, where web page content was generated vigorously from database. Then, a new concept has appeared on the Web that changed how people interact with it. This concept is named the read/write Web; it is when the Web becomes more of a platform than a media (Gillmor& Pine,1996; Berners-Lee, Hendler&Lassila, 2001). To O‘Reilly (2005), Web 2.0 is a paradigm of employing the Web as the platform to deliver and use software. Web 2.0 is defined as the innovative use of the World Wide Web to expand social and business outreach to and exploit collective intelligence from the community (O‘Reilly, 2005; O‘Reilly & Musser, 2006; Center for E-Commerce Infrastructure Development, 2007). Center for E- Commerce Infrastructure Development (2007) argues that Web 2.0 has no universally accepted definition, there are number of features that have been accepted worldwide. They includes: Architecture Participation, Personalization of web resources, Power of Long Tail, Deployment of rich applications, perpetual beta release and Syndication of information and services (Center for E-Commerce Infrastructure Development, 2007). 2.3.1 User Participation According to O‘Reilly (2005); CECID (2007) Web 2.0 serves as a platform for promoting users‘ participation and collaboration. Users are able to exchange, add, analyse and improve information resources. For example Flickr and YouTube provide unlimited media University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 16 warehouses for internet users to share photos and videos respectively (Leuthard, 2014). Wikipedia has also gained the most resourceful manuals in the world where users are able to collaboratively edit (CECID, 2007). The user participation serves two main objectives: collective intelligence exploitation and social networking (O‘Reilly, 2005; Barsky, 2006; CECID, 2007; Patel, 2013). In essence, Web 2.0 highlights the importance of content creation over consumption (Barsky, 2006). Information is liberated from traditional content owners or their mediators, permitting anybody to produce, accumulate, consolidate, discover and exchange content to meet their own needs or the needs of clients, courtesy of the emergence of new flexible content licensing models like creative Commons (KamelBoulos& Wheeler, 2007).Web 2.0 is structured around open programming interfaces that allow widespread participation. Increased user contribution leads to the growth of collective intelligence, and re-usable dynamic content. Such engagement with content promotes a sense of community, empowerment and ownership for users. The most recognized examples are Wikipedia, Flickr and YouTube (Ibid, 2007). 2.3.2 Power of Long Tail The ―Long Tail‖ concept proposes that products that are in low demand or have low sales volume can collectively make up a market share that rivals or exceeds the relatively few current bestsellers and blockbusters (O‘Reilly, 2005). Anderson (2006) argues that Long Tail refers to the tail of Pareto distribution, which states that 80% of the product variants represent only 20% of the market. According to Kalbach (2008) Long Tail is a well-known term used to explain the power of laws and statistical distributions such as Pareto distribution. For example, the most popular music albums represent only a small portion of all albums created, even though they account for the bulk of the sales. On his part, Lew (2008) refers to ―Long Tail‖ concept as internet-based economy that has enabled company success through a focus University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 17 on highly specialized service and products that are not in high volume demand, but maybe in high-value demand. Long Tail is potential market created by the internet as a distribution and sales channel opportunities that enable businesses to tap into market successfully (CECID, 2007). Kalbach (2008) says the long tail has economic consequences. Bricks and mortar, businesses are constrained by physical limitations. According to Lew (2008) there‘s limited shelf space in a store or limited screenings of movies in a theatre. Consequently, those business owners are financially compelled to focus on the most popular products (Kalbach, 2008). But with online platform, there is essentially no limit to what can be offered. With digital goods like music downloads or even information, there is immeasurable shelf space. More information is practically free you just add it to the database (Ibid, 2008). 2.3.3 Personalization of the Web Resources According to O‘Reilly (2005), web resources that were distributed on Web 1.0 were in the setup decided by the service providers. It can be argued that users are given limited flexibility to select what web resources to consume and how they are well presented to meet the needs and preferences of specific users (O‘Reilly, 2005; CECID, 2007; Stone, 2009; Almeida, 2012). With the advent of Web 2.0 users play the active role to manage web resources that are only relevant to their needs (CECID, 2007; Ullrich et al., 2008; Mcloughlin& Lee, 2010 and Cristea& Joy, 2011). Selwyn (2007) observes that Google Reader and Bloglines as feed readers, allow users to subscribe the web feeds relevant to individuals‘ interests, and organize and direct the feeds in users‘ preferred ways (CECID, 2007). My Yahoo offers personalized homepages to users for placing regularly used web services such as stock quotes, weather University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 18 information on a page (Selwyn, 2007; CECID, 2007). In Web 2.0, users need not follow the navigation structures pre-designed for all users by service providers (O‘Reilly, 2005). 2.3.4 Perpetual Beta Release O‘Reilly and Musser (2006) observe that millions of people use Google every day but no one has ever asked this question ―What version of Google is this?‖ There is no Google 1.2. In the Web 2.0 era, users only think in terms of services but not software packages and they expect these services to just be there and to improve over time. No versions, no installations, no upgrades needed (Ullrich et al., 2008). According to O‘Reilly and Musser (2006) ―The traditional design-develop-test-ship-install cycle of packaged software is ending.‖ In contrast to traditional software, Web 2.0 applications are no longer released in version-based software packages, one version at a time, but are constantly refined and improved (Ullrich et al., 2008). O‘Reilly and Musser (2006), and Ullrich et al. (2008), conclude that applications are no longer software artefacts, they are ongoing services. This has significant impact on the entire software development and delivery process. Therefore, in the era of Web 2.0 features are added on a regular basis as part of the normal user experience by engaging users to be real-time testers, and blueprint the service to disclose how people use the invention (O‘Reilly & Musser, 2006). 2.3.5 Deployment of Rich Applications Miko (2011) explains that web applications originally were not to run as stand-alone desktop software, but web applications. O‘Reilly and Musser (2006) conclude that the advancement of technology now backs the deployment of feature rich and interactive applications on web browsers. Adobe Flash, JavaScript and Ajax as new web technologies have gone beyond the limitation of the one-action-one-page-load interaction between browsers and servers University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 19 (O‘Reilly, 2005; CECID, 2007; Miko, 2011). Now the browser is more capable of executing complex logic to enrich the users‘ interactivity with the website without unnecessary and redundant data queries to the server (Ullrich et al., 2008). Web applications are extensively enhanced in the area of interactivity, so complicated applications can be deployed and sophisticated business services can be delivered (O‘Reilly, 2005). For example, Yahoo Mail provides a web mail environment similar to the Microsoft Outlook capability and Google docs and spreadsheets provide word processing and spreadsheet applications on browsers (Ibid, 2005). 2.3.6 Syndication of Information and Services O‘Reilly and Musser (2006), and Tschirch (2009), posit that in the Web 1.0 context information is circulated and services are provided for consumption by human users only. Conversely, Web 2.0 promotes reuse of web resources and a web application can be provided as syndication of other applications offered by different providers (O‘Reilly, 2005; O‘Reilly & Musser, 2006; Tschirch, 2009). This suggests thatweb developers should target to produce information and services not only for use by only human users but also for reuse by other software applications (O‘Reilly, 2005). Content creation takes place with a staggering speed and vital syndication tools like Web feed aggregators and formats like Really Simple Syndication and Atom give users control over the information load (Tschirch, 2009). To Bohringer (2009) an important criterion of syndication is that the information and services must be accessible through some standardized web API so that third party applications can utilize these web resources. For instance, while the contents of a website are created, the designers should consider not only how they are configured in a web design but also whether they are well characterised and set out in web feeds for subscription by feed readers (Tschirch, 2009). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 20 2.4 Information and Communication Technologies and Tourism Buhalis (2003) posits that information and communication technologies can be defined as the entire range of electronic tools that facilitate the operational and strategic management of organizations by enabling them to manage their data, tasks and procedures as well as to communicate interactively with their patrons, enabling them to achieve their mission and goals. There is no doubt about the impact technology and its incredible development during the past few decades has made on human lives in developed and developing nations. Buhalis and Law (2008) explain that technology has made lives easier, safer, and more comfortable in many ways. Tourism industry is an information-rich industry (Zhou, 2004; Hinson &Boateng, 2007).According to O‘Connor (1999), and Buhalis (2003) information and communication technologies most notably the coming in to prominence of the Internet in the1990s, has impacted the tourism sector greatly. Gretzel and Fesenmaier (2009) explain that tourism is reported to be one of the most important sectors that make use of Internet technology. Representing the pioneers of technological applications in tourism, technologies such as the central reservation systems and global distribution systems attributed enormously to the development and growth of the industry. Improvements in technologies led what would become the internet (Gretzel&Fesenmaier, 2009) and with the incessant improvements of the World Wide Web the tourism industry has been transformed (Buhalis, 2003). Enhancements in technology have enabled great improvements concerning organizational performance (Buhalis, 2003). Enterprises are now able to manage their operations and resources more ―efficiently and effectively‖…―increase their productivity‖…―expand geographically and coordinate their undertakings locally, countrywide and internationally‖ (Buhalis, 2003). Particularly communication and engagement with customers, suppliers and other publics has been improved (Aggarwal, 2011). Enhancements in technology have University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 21 therefore enabled great improvements concerning organizational performance which in turn had a great impact on the organization‘s attractiveness (Buhalis, 2003). Gretzel and Fesenmaier (2009) argue that tourism sector has been affected drastically by technology which has led to ―fundamental changes in the industry structures and tourist conducts‖. This shows that technology is very central to tourism industry. The extent to which such technologies have impacted the way travellers ―search for, purchase, consume, and remember tourism experiences‖ (Bidgoli, 2004) and the way they connect with each other (Gretzel&Yoo, 2007) is immense (Bidgoli, 2004). 2.5 Social Media as a Communication Tool In recent years, the issue of social media being used as a means of communication and relationship building for business has been extensively researched by scholars (Cox, Burgess, Sellito, &Buultjens, 2009; McGuire, 2011; Kavanaugh et al., 2011;Yazdanifard, Obeidy, Yusoff, &Babaei, 2011; Lovejoy & Saxton, 2012; Bosch, 2012; Seth, 2012; Leung et al., 2013; Johston, Chen &Hauman, 2013; Sullivan, 2013; Leue, Jung & Knowles, 2013; Senders, Govers&Neuts, 2013; Schroeder, Pennington-Gay, Donohoe, &Kiousis, 2013; Kim &Tussyadiah, 2013). Most of the studies mentioned have researched into social media in the developed countries with only a limited studies in the case of sub-Saharan Africa or less developed countries, (Kavanaugh et al., 2011; Sotiriadis& Van Zyle, 2013) are examples of studies from Africa.According to Boateng (2014), MTN Ghana and Vodafone Ghana have employed social media to manage customer knowledge. The companies engage customers on Facebook and Twitter to access their knowledge and provide the customers with knowledge about their products and services (Ibid). Social media have been used to solicit insights from customers about new product features that customers may want MTN Ghana and Vodafone to add to their products and services (Ibid).Hisstudy explained that MTN Ghana and University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 22 Vodafone Ghana have used Facebook and Twitter tomanage knowledge for customers and knowledge from customers. However, the two companies appear to have under-utilized social media in managing knowledgeabout customers. He further added that although MTN Ghana had used Facebook to manage knowledge about customers, thishad not been enough as compared to knowledge for customers and knowledge from customers. Different scholars have defined social media. According to Kaplan and Haenlein (2009), social media are composed of a number of internet-based applications; it is based on the ―ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0‖ and allows users to exchange and create their idea and information. O‘Reilly (2005) web 2.0 is a platform on which social media is based. Evans (2008) Social media are changing very quickly; they involve various social channels for photo, video and other information exchange. According to Mayfield (2008), social media ―blurs the line between media and audience‖, it encourages users to post comments and share information. It is considered as a two-way conversation tool. It also contains the community characteristic and users can share their interests through it. The best ―Social media provide the way people share ideas, content, thought, and relationships online‖ (Scott, 2010). It includes blogs, social media, social networking, wikis and the other servers for photo and video sharing. Based on the definitions one can say that social media is a platform for sharing information (Sullivan, 2013). Users can produce, post comments, discuss and consume information through social media. It is not surprising that the extant literature on social media agree that social media is a good approach for knowledge sharing and creation (Buhalis, 2003). In his study, Sullivan (2013) reveals that traditional marketing was a one way conversation with the product or service provider supplying the consumer with information hoping to University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 23 entice the consumer into a purchase. Social media has changed that dynamic very much into a two way conversation (Mahmood, 2012). This could be as a result of the instant messaging opportunities available with social media platforms at the fingertips of both parties (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2011). Social media can be used to create brand ambassadors as well as encouraging guests to speak out about their stay with the hotel (Leue, Jung, & Knowles, 2013). The more they review, tweet, post about the hotels, the more the search engines pay attention. Leue, Jung, and Knowles (2013) conducted an exploratory study consisting of 32 semi-structured telephone interviews which were conducted within the UK from December 2011 until 2012. They found out that increased pressure from competition was a major reason for engaging in social media, in order to avoid being overrun by competitors marketing strategies (Ibid, 2013). They further revealed that social media was a new way of communication. It was identified that in today‘s trend of smartphones and tablets, there is the need for hotels to be present on social media as it is the easiest way to get in contact and gather information (Leue, Jung, & Knowles, 2013). This outcome was confirmed through the interviews with the demand side. A similar exploratory study in Malaysia by Ab Hamid et al (2013), revealed that the three research variables namely; use of social media, trust and customer retention, are directly correlated thus have influence on the customer satisfaction and retention. Indeed, among the factors that hoteliers should emphasize is the use of social media as the marketing communication channel (Aggarwal, 2011). Social media tools such as blogs, Facebook and twitter are gaining popularity and the trends are showing that more literate and younger customers have begun to respond well to these tools (O‘connor, 2011). The power of viral marketing afforded by the social media must be managed well as to leverage on the cost effective means to reach out to the like-minded group of potential customers, which University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 24 otherwise might be lost to other competitors (Mahmood, 2012). Senders, Govers and Neuts (2013) indicated that customers enjoy building online relationships with tour operators and those online special deals and discounts might be counterproductive in building loyalty through social media. Essentially, social media disseminates word of mouth electronically, unlike traditional word of mouth (Aggarwal, 2011), and that managers should create opportunities for past visitors to narrate memorable tourism experiences, involving industry partners to build relevant destination images and greater engagement with social media (Tham, Croy&Mair, 2013). According to Kietzmann et al. (2011) social media has super broadcasting capability and influencing power. Due to the influencing power many celebrities, politicians, and stars have opened their accounts on Twitter (Kietzmann et al., 2011). This goes to underline reasons for the utilization of social media as a communication tool in varied industries (O‘connor, 2011). 2.6 Benefits and Negatives of Social Media utilization Social media utilization comes with a lot of benefits to companies (Aggarwal, 2011). Many scholars including Ahlqvist et al. (2008), and Mangold and Faulds (2009) have argued that social media utilization empowers customers to make informed decision before and during purchasing process. The conversations exchanged/customer engagements on social media channels provide market intelligence for a company (Mangold&Faulds, 2009). Ahlqvist et al. (2008), Mangold and Faulds (2009), and Kaplan and Haelein (2011) all these scholars contend that social media increases brand awareness, influences purchasing behaviour, provides assistance in pre and post-purchase communication and evaluation and increases audience. Masterson andTribby (2008) and Mahmood (2012) argue that social media is of low cost and a global reach. Comparing with traditional advertising that often requires a big budget, the only cost companies need to invest for keeping social media channels running is University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 25 to invest time. Kaplan and Haenlein (2010), and O‘connor (2011) contend that social media offers companies opportunity to reach out and talk to their current and potential customer who expect to find their brands online. Again, Aggarwal (2011) posits that by participating in several social media channels can help organizations to increase their visibility. On another level social media has put the consumer in charge (Aggarwal, 2011). It is open to everyone and everyone has the opportunity to voice their opinions and views (Evans & McKee, 2008). Companies can no longer control consumers by sending them a one-way message (Buhalis, 2003). Social media involves a two-way relationship where consumers talk to companies and among each other in order to get a real view about products, services, and brands (Evans & McKee, 2008). On the social web consumers have the opportunity to talk to each other and increasingly they seek to find out about second opinions, experiences and views about services and products (Aggarwal, 2011). For many companies this may be difficult to accept as this can greatly influence how a firm‘s campaign or message is perceived by an audience. Consumers may not support it and create another message that can be the opposite making the efforts, time as well as the money invested seem all in vain (O‘connor, 2011). However, as much as companies would like to control what is being said about them in most cases they cannot control it. Therefore, companies need to find ways to address this (Evans & McKee, 2008). By integrating such trustworthy online word of mouth in their social media strategy hotels can support their customers to reduce perceived risk in their early stage of the decision- making process and offer them a way to share their experiences after their trip (Murphy, Centeno Gil, &Schegg,2010). Similarly, Aggarwal (2011), CEO of Milestone Internet Marketing, suggests that hotels should encourage their guests to leave more reviews on different social media platforms. The fact that dissatisfied customers with a bad experience University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 26 are more likely to share it with others than customers who had a good experience, hotels should use this opportunity to increase the amount of positive word of mouth and promote their business. Hotels should not fear the presence of bad reviews (Aggarwal, 2011).While responding to a good review can strengthen the customer‘s loyalty to a brand, responding to a bad review can show customers that their concern is being acknowledged and taken care of (O‘Connor, 2011). In the end the hotel might even be able to convert an angry guest into a loyal customer. Thus, integrating such systems gives hotels also the opportunity to build a loyal customer base (Aggarwal, 2011). Lastly, social media offers companies the opportunity to engage with their customers and create a dialogue and a relationship with them (Evans & McKee, 2008). Once a company has created an account on a social media platform, it has the opportunity to interact with customers by producing content (O‘Connor, 2011). Generally, consumers will be skeptical towards overtly commercial content or messages (Aggarwal, 2011). Rather, content should be relevant and engaging and foster dialog between the brand and the consumer (O‘Connor, 2011). Suggestions in doing so include offering insider tips, local weather or restaurant suggestions (Aggarwal, 2011). Probably any recommendation about events in a city will appeal to travellers. Challenging users to take a quiz and poll (Withiam, 2010) or the application of activities such open-ended questions or fill-in the blank posts can also help heighten interaction (Aggarwal, 2011). There are several features and affordances of social media that can help a brand to invite interaction and engagement (Aggarwal, 2011). Brands can make use of various design features that can make a page more appealing and engage users more to a page, for example (Withiam, 2010).However, social media utilization also come with shortfalls which include spread of false information (Bute et al., 2014), damaging University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 27 company reputation (Buted et al., 2014), disclosing trade secrets (Buted et al., 2014) and spammers (Benevenuto et al., 2008; Hu, Tang & Liu, 2014). 2.7 Social Network Sites Social network sites are generic terms for sites that allow users to connect with others with similar backgrounds and interests (Weinberg, 2009). According to Boyd and Ellison (2007) social network sites are web-based services that allow individuals to construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system. The nature and nomenclature of these connections may vary from site to site (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) postulate that in the social networking sites the focus is put on the users by enabling them to create personal profiles including information such as photos, video and audio files. Users can connect with friends and colleagues, have access to profiles, and exchange messages with each other (Aggarwal, 2011). Examples of social networking sites include Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, YouTube, LinkedIn and XING (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2010). 2.7.1 Twitter (Microblogging) According to Mills, Chen, Lee,andRaghavRao(2009) Twitter is a microblogging site, which allows people to post brief updates of up to 140 characters that, can supply up-to-the-minute information, instant responses to questions or wider issues of the moment and links to websites. Microblogging is a communication service which enables users to post short messages into an initially undirected message stream (Riemer& Richter, 2010). Twitter has become the largest micro-blogging site on the Internet. About 19% of all Internet users use Twitter or a similar service for microblogging (Fox, Zickuhr, & Smith, 2009), and strategic University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 28 communicators recognize its ability to reach a large number of stakeholders, as Twitter has become the most-used social media application in official public relations, advertising, and marketing campaigns (Riemer& Richter, 2010). Currently, Twitter has approximately 300 million monthly active users. Some business benefits of Twitter include the following: Communication Riemer and Richter (2010); Israel (2009) and Sommerfeldt and Taylor (2011) contend that the most observable use and benefit of Twitter is communication. Tweets can inform global audiences about your business‘s news and successes, events promotion and discounts due to its super broadcasting power (Micek& Warren, 2009). Evans, Twomey and Talan (2011) and Sommerfeldt and Taylor (2011) Twitter can be used to drive audiences there. It can also be used to comment on industry news or developments. These communications should aim to inform and engage followers, building trust, rapport and lasting relationships. Brand visibility and recognition The ultimate aim of all brands is to achieve top-of-mind recall with audience (Aaker, 1996, Dolak, 2008).Micek and Warren (2009) posit that Twitter allows businesses to build a presence where people virtually congregate on a daily basis. This incites audiences to think of your business when they need a product or service. Additionally, because Twitter is about two-way communication, it feels personal. It is a fantastic medium for personifying a brand, making contact more attainable in the eyes of stakeholders (Dolak, 2008). Attract Customers According to Micek and Warren (2009) Twitter has become proponent of Permission marketing where businesses can appropriately and persuasively attract new customers instead University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 29 of chasing them. In tweeting information that is useful, relevant and engaging, companies invite customers who are interested in the brand (O‘Connor, 2011). Currently, Twitter has 284 million monthly active users (Tyner, 2014). It can be argued that instant posting service is used mostly on mobile phones (80% of Twitter active users) than on PCs. There are about 500 million Tweets send by day. Also, the language barrier is not a problem – the website supports more than 35 languages (Tyner, 2014). Monitor Trends Israel (2009) and Kaplan and Haelein (2011) observe that businesses and brands can stay abreast of information and trends by paying attention to the conversations going on Twitter. Conversations taking place on Twitter are taking place in real time and are coming directly from the mouths of consumers, clients, influencers and thought leaders (Kaplan &Haelein, 2011). Using this information to guide business, services and product innovations can prove to be a valuable advantage over competitors (Micek& Warren, 2009). 2.7.2 Facebook Facebook is the largest social network platform on the internet, translated in over 70 languages (Facebook, 2012). Facebook was launched in February, 2004 by Harvard undergraduate Mark Zuckerberg, to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected. In October, 2012 Wall Street Journal reported that Facebook had reached 500 million active users July 2010 making Facebook one of the fastest-growing sites in history (Wall Street Journal, October 4, 2012). The social networking website Facebook now has over 1.39 billion active users across over 47,000 regional, work-related, collegiate and high school networks (Pew Internet, 2015). According to Hoffman (2009) it took radio 38 years to reach a target audience of 50 million, but for Facebook took it took two years. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 30 Aggarwal (2011) argues that users spend on average 20 minutes a day on Facebook engaging in the site. Facebook can be broken into four main parts: profiles, groups, pages, and events. Profiles are how people represent themselves to others (Aggarwal, 2011).Users make their profile pages unique to their own style, interests, and creativity (O‘Connor, 2011). Groups are created by users, and allow users to take part in smaller communities within Facebook that support certain interests or beliefs that are shared by others (Aggarwal, 2011). Facebook recently overtook Google as the most visited site in the world, with one out of every seven minutes online spent on Facebook. It has definitely acquired a massive and highly engaged audience (Dabner, 2012). The average Facebook user spends approximately seven hours per month on Facebook (O‘Connor, 2011). Regarding the online activity, more than 2 billion posts are liked and commented on per day (Aggarwal, 2011). After ten years of existence, Facebook has undoubtedly proven its power to help people communicate more efficiently and has become a powerhouse of marketing activity (Dabner, 2012). This is due to the wide number of engaged users on the site and the simplicity of connecting them directly (Aggarwal, 2011). On a business perspective, Facebook can be extremely useful in finding new customers from over 1.39 billion users on Facebook, 50% of each are active every day (O‘connor, 2011). There is real-time feedback on user interaction with posted information (Aggarwal, 2011). Building online communities of fans, and digging into gold mines of demographic information, through the use of Facebook Pages, Facebook is free of charge-so it lowers the cost of operation (Kaplan &Haelein 2011; Dabner, 2012). According to Boyd and Ellison (2007) Facebook makes it simpler to communicate with multiple people at one time. After ten years of existence, Facebook has undoubtedly proven its power to help people communicate more efficiently and University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 31 has become a powerhouse of marketing activity due to the wide number of engaged users on the site and the simplicity of connecting them directly (Mahmood, 2012; Dabner, 2012). 2.7.3 YouTube In February of 2005, Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim founded YouTube (Varga, 2009). The site was created as a forum for people to create and share short video clips online (Varga, 2009). According to Woletz (2008), YouTube is a video-sharing service that lets users upload files to YouTube servers, where they are available online. Videos can be informational, entertaining, persuasive, or purely personal. One of an emerging class of social applications, YouTube allows users to post and tag videos, watch those posted by others, post comments in a threaded discussion format, search for content by keyword or category, and create and participate in topical groups (Woletz, 2008). Varga (2009) contends that YouTube is known to be user generated content and rank among the most successful Web 2.0 platforms or tools. Siersdorfer, Chelaru, Nejdl, & San Pedro (2010) state that registered users can upload their videos to the server, share them with the world, watch all other videos uploaded to the site and interact with the community. However unregistered users can also watch videos, but cannot upload and share their content to interact with the community (Siersdorfer et al., 2010). 2.7.4 Flickr Van Alstyne and Brynjolfsson (2005) argue that with the advent of the Web 2.0 various social resource sharing platforms arose which allow their users to easily organize and share digital resources. Well-known examples of such platforms are Delicious for bookmarks, Flickr focusing on photos and YouTube for videos (Woletz, 2008; Siersdorfer et al., 2010). Flickr was launched in February 2004 by Ludicorp, a Vancouverbased company founded by University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 32 Stewart Butterfield and Caterina Fake. The service emerged out of tools originally created for Ludicorp's Game Neverending, a web-based massively multiplayer online game (Woletz, 2008). Flickr proved a more feasible project, and ultimately Game Never ending was shelved (Leuthard, 2014). Flickr is a Web 2.0 technology that allows users to create photo sets and collections to manage content, and participate in topical groups to cultivate a sense of community (Siersdorfer et al., 2010). Leuthard (2014) posits that Flickr provides the tools, but the value derives from the contributions of the user community-photos, comments, ratings, and organization-and the connections that the site facilitates between individuals. Flickr also provides a range of privacy settings, giving users considerable control over how their photos can be used (Tyner, 2014). In terms of communication Flickr provides a variety of information about the photo: who uploaded it and when, what groups it has been submitted to, its tags, who commented on the image and when, how many times the image was viewed or bookmarked as a ―favorite‖ (Marlow, Naaman, Boyd, & Davis, 2006). Clicking on a user‘s name brings one to their photo stream, which shows the latest photos they have uploaded, the images they have marked as their ―favorite,‖ and their profile, which gives information about the user, which includes a list of their contacts and the groups they belong to (Tyner, 2014). Clicking on the tag shows user‘s images that have been tagged with this keyword, or all public images that have been similarly tagged (Tyner, 2014). Finally, the group link brings the user to the group‘s page, which shows the photo pool, group membership, popular tags, discussions and other information about the group (Leuthard, 2014). 2.7.5 LinkedIn LinkedIn is a Web 2.0 application. It may also be referred to as social software or an online community (O‘Rielly, 2005; Tyner, 2014). LinkedIn is a world-wide social networking University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 33 service that was started in 2002 and officially launched in 2003. The main purpose of LinkedIn is to provide business opportunities for professionals from all over the world through organizing and expanding one‘s professional network (Kanter, 2015). The network addresses both employers and employees, and it mediates a potential for people to find new resources in addition to being found and given opportunities as a resource (Kanter, 2015). Users can search for jobs, clients or partners; they can distribute listings, discuss business issues and make themselves more visible in their own industry (Thew, 2008; Gerard, 2011). LinkedIn users are allowed to create a profile where they put down their qualifications and interests, very much like a résumé (Thew, 2008). Any member of LinkedIn will, through searching for the same qualifications, be able to find someone‘s profile. In addition it is possible to send out invitations and search for former colleagues and classmates, as well as other acquaintances. The users create the content and manage the information on their own (Tyner, 2014). In January 2008 LinkedIn had grown to include over 17 million members, representing 150 different industries (Thew, 2008; Gerard, 2011). From March 2007 until March 2008, LinkedIn had a growth of 319%, making it the fastest growing social networking service available (Thew, 2008). LinkedIn users may choose between free and premium accounts. The latter gives access to better tools for searching and communicating, making it easier to get in touch with new people (Tyner, 2014; Kanter, 2015). LinkedIn has more than 6,800 full-time employees with offices in 30 cities around the world. LinkedIn started off 2012 with about 2,100 full-time employees worldwide, up from around 1,000 at the beginning of 2011 and about 500 at the beginning of 2010. LinkedIn operates the world‘s largest professional network on the internet with more than 347 million members in over 200 countries and territories and currently available in twenty four languages (Tyner, 2014; Kanter, 2015). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 34 Cultural Factors Human Skills H2 Cost Factors ICT Infrastructure Managerial Style Competition Social Media utilization H1 H3 H5 H4 H6 2.7.6 The Conceptual Framework The conceptual framework gives a representation of the research study by emphasizing patterns of elements and their interrelation with key concepts of the research (Fisher et al., 2010). The essence of conceptual framework is to help present the ideas in a more concise form through diagrams for easy understaning.The conceptual framework for this study is adapted from Bulankulama, Khatibi, and Herath (2014).The framework captures the factors influencing social media adoption in the hotel industry which includes cultural factors, cost factors, human resource, ICT infrastructure, managerial style and competition. These factors will lead to social media utilization, and then the utilization leading to social media utilization outcomes. Adapted from Bulankulama, KhatibiandHerath(2014) 2.8.0 Social Media Utilization Social media utilization in this study refers to the presence of hotels on social media platforms, the level of utilization, visibility and the level of engagement with customers University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 35 (O‘Connor, 2011; Aggarwal, 2011; Evans &Mckee, 2008). The social media channels use in this study includes Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Flickr. 2.8.1 Cultural factors Culture according to Hofstede (2001) is the collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members in one group or category of people from another. Herbig and Dunphy(1998) argue that existing cultural conditions are factors of diffusion of an innovative technology. This suggests that technology adoption may be influenced by cultural differences. Again, culture influences attitudes and behavioural intention towards technology and innovation, which have been shown to affect decision to adopt technology (Eseonu&Egbue, 2014). According to Eseonu and Egbue (2014) the differences in infrastructural and other institutional supports, and cultural and social norms, technology driven development in developing countries such as Ghana and Nigeria, varies significantly from developed countries such as the US and UK. The successful distribution of an innovation occurs in five stages according to Rogers (2003). Knowledge should drive innovation and recipients must be persuaded to form a positive or negative view of the innovation. The potential adopters then make a decision to adopt or reject the innovation. They implement their decision and go through the final stage of confirmation in which they seek information to affirm their decision. This process is also influenced by cultural differences (Rogers, 2003). In conclusion Schlagwein and Prasarnphanich (2014) found that societal culture impact on the organizational adoption of social media use by organizations. Again, according to Lekhanya (2013) cultural factors influence the utilization of social media as a communication tool. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 36 2.8.2 Human Skills Nguyen (2009) argues that employees are significant assets to organizations, and seriously affect the firm‘s survival. It can be argued that users of IT are valuable resource for firms (Caldeira& Ward, 2003), which should be developed to contribute to the success of the organization in the area of IT knowledge, training, attitude and intention toward IT, and participation and involvement in adoption process (Caldeira& Ward, 2003). Premkumar and Roberts (1999) posit that as users‘ awareness of information telecommunication technologies are increasing, it will positively influence the process of adopting social media technologies. Delone and McLean (2003) posit that the success of implementing innovation is predicated on human resource factors. Understanding what determinants affect innovation implementation success is important since these factors can arise during all phases of the technology planning and installation process (Kavangh&Thite, 2009). Human factors such as user adaptation, acceptance, training, and on-going support are as critical as the technical aspects of the implementation process (DeLone& McLean, 2003). For example, DeLone and McLean (2003) have offered an updated model of information systems success asserting that individual level variables such as system usage, system quality, and information quality influence the success of the organization‘s IT implementation initiative. 2.8.3 Cost Factors Santarelli and Sterlacchini (1990) posit that firms can meaningfully succeed depending on their innovative efforts and the quality of its capital stock. Technology adoption greatly depends upon the amount of planned capital expenditure and the firm‘s ability to secure capital for technology adoption (Kerr & Newell, 2003). Thus, while capital is likely to provide opportunities for technology adoption activities in the firm, cost of capital is a major concern that prevents the firms from making technology investment decisions and developing University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 37 adoption activities (Kerr & Newell, 2003). The cost of capital refers to the general cost- related problems associated with advanced technology adoption, the cost of technology acquisition, equipment purchase, and development and maintenance expenses (Baldwin & Lin 2002). 2.8.4 ICT Infrastructure According to Andonova (2006) fixed telephone lines, mobile cellular telephony services, internet penetration rate, broadband internet services, computers, and international internet bandwidth constitute ICT infrastructure. Information technology infrastructure includes networks; management and provisioning of large-scale computing, electronic data interchange and shared databases, and research and development to identify emerging technologies (Davenport, Hammer, &Metsisto, 1989). It has been argued that the development of information and communication technology (ICT) provides leapfrogging opportunities for developing countries. Ghana has not been left out in this revolution. According to the Data Development Group of the World Bank, ICT infrastructure in Ghana is progressing better than other low-income countries and above the 1.1% average for Sub- Saharan Africa. Jan, Abdullah and Momen (2015) postulate that technological advancement in the Information and Communication technologies (ICT) make it possible for people to interact virtually. ICT is one of the many factors that have influenced users‘ adoption of Social Networking. Millions of people worldwide are using Social Networking daily (Jan, Abdullah &Momen, 2015). There are thousands of Social Networking Sites available in many countries with different languages for various purposes (Hawkin, Bulmer & Eagle, 2011). The newer advanced technologies include Smart mobile phone and the broadband Internet, thus technological advancement has indirectly revolutionized peoples‘ daily University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 38 activities, pattern of interaction, behaviour and life style (Jan, Abdullah and Momen, 2015). ICT is a supporter of innovation in the hospitality industry (Mihalic&Buhalis, 2013). 2.8.5 Managerial Style Rizzoni (1991) explains that CEO is the main decision maker, the characteristics of the CEO are crucial in determining the innovative attitude of the business. This is because the CEO's qualities are the determinants of the overall management style of the business (Rothwell, 1977). Management style is one of the critical antecedents to organizational effectiveness (Quang, 2002). Management style is simply construed as a way to manage an organization (Rothwell. 1977). It is the general approach of a manager in dealing with people at work and exercising of authority over subordinates in an effort to reach organizational goals (Quang, 2002; Hartzell, 2006). Likert (1967) classified four approaches of management that constitute a continuum of participative, paternalistic, exploitative and autocratic, and consultative management style. Furthermore, Minzberg (1973) considered entrepreneurial and strategic planning as forms of management styles adopted by managers in organizational entities. In recent times, commonly exhibited styles of management includes authoritarian, coercive, authoritative, democratic, affiliative, permissive, indifferent, coaching, pacesetting, visionary, bureaucratic and defensive styles of management (Effere, 2005). Yang, Lee and Lee (2007) argue that management style factors, such as the CEO‘s attitude toward and interest in ICT, ICT evaluation period and initial implementation time, and the CEO‘s age and attitude toward change are important to promote ICT adoption. 2.8.6 Competition According to Leue, Jung and Knowles (2013),competitive pressure is the level of competition within the environment the organization operates. Kimberley and Evanisko (1981) explain University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 39 that successful business approach is to build a competitive advantage in the marketplace. It is generally believed that competition necessitates innovation adoption and increases the probability of adoption of IT (Kimberley &Evanisko, 1981). A number of studies have shown that competitive pressure influences the adoption of IT (Leue, Jung & Knowles, 2013). Competitive pressure is generally perceived to have a positive influence on the adoption of IT (Gatignon& Robertson, 1989) and is one of the widely mentioned reasons for organizations to adopt IT. According to Leue, Jung and Knowles (2013) increased pressure of competition is the major reason for firms to engage in social media. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 40 CHAPTER THREE CONTEXT OF THE STUDY 3.0 Introduction The purpose of this chapter is to provide contextual background information of the study. The chapter provides information on the Ministry of Tourism, Ghana tourism federation, Ghana hotels association, and the overview of the Ghana Tourism sector and impact of tourism on the Ghanaian economy. 3.1 Technology Penetration in Ghana According to Bartlett (2002), information and communication technology (ICT) refers to systems for producing, storing, sending and retrieving digital files. These files can contain text, sounds and images, both still and moving (Ibid). Human engagements all over the world are being transformed by information and communication technologies (Alemna& Sam, 2006). Alemna and Sam (2006) contend that in reaction to international policy changes in the ICT industry, Ghana was among the first African countries to reform its ICT sector. In responding to Global ICT policy changes, Ghana enacted the needed legal and regulatory frameworks to support the growth of the sector (Ibid). Frempong and Atubra (2001) explain that since 1990, the telecommunication sector has seen major liberalization from successive governments. This was to enable the private sector to participate in the provision of services to expand access and coverage, introduce value-added services and boost consumer assess to the state-of-the-art technology. According to Frempong (2005) the Ghana government liberalized the telecom sector, based on a 5 year accelerated development programme introduced in 1994. The reason was to increase teledensity from 0.31 percent to about 1.5- 2.5 percent through provision of public and private payphones; improve public access in rural and urban areas; expand coverage of mobile services; promote Ghanaian ownership of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 41 telecommunications companies; and retain overall public regulatory control of the sector through the creation of a single agency (Ibid). The Accelerated Development Programme achieved an increase in teledensity from 0.34 lines to 1.16 lines per 1,000 inhabitants, public phones from 0.001 to 0.16 per 1,000 inhabitants (Alemna& Sam, 2006). Alemna and Sam (2006) explain that Westel, a second national operator was licensed alongside FM and TV stations. Ghana Government (2003) introduced ICT4AD policy in the latter part of 2003. The policy was to accelerate the development of Ghana through the deployment and exploitation of ICT within the economy and society (Ibid). The overall of ICT4AD was to engineer an ICT-led socio-economic development process with the potential to transform Ghana into a middle-income, information-rich, knowledge-based and technology-driven economy and society (Ghana Government, 2003). Alemna and Sam (2006) posit that access to telephone services improved considerably in the early stages of liberalization, and until recently landlines dominated the telecoms landscape in Ghana and have had a sustained growth. The mobile phone market has been one of the fastest growing sectors of ICT in Ghana. Frempong (2005) argue that, in spite of the success of mobile telephony, there is a high demand for landlines, with more than 180,000 people on the waiting list at the end of 2002. Cobbinah (2003) posits that the coming of new wireless and satellite-based solutions is pegging the country to take advantage of ICT innovations. Over the same period the use of computers and internet service providers increased. National Communications Authority (2006) provided a total of 114 companies with licensed to provide internet services in the country. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 42 3.2 Policy Environment Frempong and Atubra (2001), explain that the liberalisation of the telecoms sector makes Ghana one of the countries in Africa to have removed the monopoly of the incumbent telecoms operator. The aim was to introduce competition into the sector in an attempt to increase access to the service. One innovative milestone in the telecoms sector at the time was the declaration of the ADP which provided the policy framework for the development of the sector. 3.3 The Creation of Duopoly Wellenius (1997) contends that duopoly was to promote competition in the fixed line telephone sub-sector so as to enable subscribers enjoy the benefits of competition such as more, better and less expensive services. So in trying to break the monopoly of the Ghana Telecom, westel was licensed in 1997. The Ghana Telecom and Westel were tasked to provide 250,000 and 30,000 lines respectively for a 5-year period. Again, Ghana Telecom was privatized following the Ghana government sale of 30% share to a consortium led by the Telekom Malaysia (Wellenius, 1997). 3.4 Establishment of National Communication Authority The National Communication Authority was established by the NCA Act, 1996, Act 524 now replaced by the National Communications Authority Act of 2008, Act 769. The motive behind the establishment was to regulate communication through wireless, cable, radio, television, satellite and similar technology for orderly development and operation of efficient communication services in Ghana. Previously, Ghana Telecom was acting as the player and a referee, hence an independent regulatory body (National Communication Authority, 2006). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 43 Objectives of the Regulatory body included: Promoting competition among persons engaged in the provision of communication services Protect operators and consumers from unfair conduct of other operators with regard to quality of communication services and payment of tariffs in respect of the services, and Protect the interest of consumers. To achieve the above objectives, the Act spelt out a number of functions for the NCA, these include: Granting of licenses for the operation of communication system, Assigning, allocating and regulating the use of frequencies in the country in conformity with international requirements, Provision of guidelines on tariffs chargeable for provision of communication services, and Advising on policy formulation and development strategies for the communication industry. 3.5 Internet Penetration Alemna and Sam (2006) explain that Ghana became the second country in Sub-Saharan African to have full internet connectivity in August 1995. Ghana is directly connected to the world‘s first submarine fibre-optic cable system, SAT-3/WASC/SAFE, which links Africa to Europe and Asia. Network Computer Systems Ltd (NCS), one of the first IT/ISP Companies in Ghana, established the first connection. NCS was given its own VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) gateway as a result of the constraints experienced by Ghana Telecom University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 44 (GT) (now Vodafone Ghana). Nevertheless, the Internet sector‘s expansion has been seriously inhibited by a shortage of functional dial-up phone lines (Alemna& Sam, 2006). According to Alemna and Sam (2006), the National Communication Authority (NCA) had licensed 52 Internet Service Providers (ISPs) by 2002, although only about ten were operational at that time. In 2005, the ITU Basic ICT Statistics revealed very low internet penetration in Ghana. The number of internet users per 10,000 inhabitants increased to 172 in 2004, which was higher than the African average of 123.21 (Frempong, 2005). At the end of 2008, the National Communications Authority (NCA) had licensed a total of 114 companies to provide Internet services in the country. Out of these, 36 had actually commenced business (National Communications Authority, 2006). Internet penetration in Ghana is relatively low. According to Statistics available from the International Telecommunication Union, (ITU), the number of Internet users in Ghana increased from 30,000 in 2000 to 1, 297,000 in 2011. Even though the increment in terms of absolute figures was encouraging, the penetration rate was 5.2%, which was lower than the African average rate of 11.5% (ITU, 2011). Ghana‘s internet usage as against its‘ population growth from 2000 to 2011 is presented in table 2.1 below: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 45 Table 2.1:Ghana‘s internet usage as against its‘ population growth from 2000 to 2011 Year Users Population % Penetration Usage source 2011 2,085,501 24,791,073 8.4 % ITU 2010 1,297,000 24,339,838 5.3% ITU 2009 997,000 23,887,812 4.2% ITU 2008 880,000 23,382,848 3.8% ITU 2007 609 800 21 801 662 2.8% ITU 2006 401,300 21,501,842 1.8% ITU 2005 368,000 21,029,850 1.6% ITU 2001 40,500 19,101,878 0.3% ITU 2000 30,000 18,881,600 0.2% ITU Source:ITU (2011) 3.6 Mobile Telephony Access to telephone services improved considerably in the early stages of the liberalization (Frimpong and Atubra,2001). With respect to the market, telephone penetration at the end of 2008 was 52.4%; composed of 99% mobile and 1% fixed. The equivalent access lines in service were Eleven Million, Five Hundred and Seventy Thousand, Four Hundred and Thirty (11,570,430) mobile; and One Hundred and Forty-Three Thousand, Nine Hundred (143,900) fixed (National Communications Authority, 2006). At the end of 2011, the penetration rate of mobile telephony was 75% equivalent to seventeen million (17,000,000) access lines (Frimpong, 2005). According to Frimpong (2005), Ghana has one of the more competitive telecom markets in the region. The country was among the first to privatize the incumbent operator, and was a pioneer in developing mobile telephony and data services (Alemna and Sam, 2006). It was also among the first on the continent to connect to the internet. Although fixed-line infrastructure requires considerable investment, the vibrant mobile market has ensured that internet penetration is comparatively high. The government has made steady efforts in recent years to develop computer literacy and to extend internet availability through a network of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 46 public access venues. Low user penetration in the early part of the century was largely due to the high cost of services, exacerbated by unreliable networks and a poor quality of service. However, in recent years international connectivity has increased dramatically: a fifth submarine cable which came on stream earlier in 2013 has helped reduce the cost of bandwidth to a tenth of that in 2007. Lower pricing has filtered down to consumers, with Ghana Telecom being one of several operators which have invested in national networks to extend broadband availability deeper into rural areas (National Communication Authority, 2013). 3.7 Mobile Market National Communication Authority (2012) the mobile market is well served by six competing players. Since launching the first cellular mobile network in sub-Saharan Africa in 1992, Ghana has developed one of the continent‘s most vibrant mobile markets, with six competing operators including regional heavyweights such as MTN, Vodafone, BhartiAirtel (formerly Zain) and Millicom (Tigo). The entry of Nigeria‘s Globacom as the sixth player in 2012 has delivered another boost to the sector. Subscriber growth, however, has come at the expense of lower Average Revenue per User (ARPU). While the voice market is saturated, there is enormous growth potential in both subscriber and ARPU for mobile broadband services. Mobile broadband already accounts for the vast majority of internet connections in the country. Services based on HSPA technology have helped extend broadband availability. This has improved the growth potential of m-commerce and m-banking services. MTN Ghana‘s Mobile Money service is very popular, complemented by its new ‗ATM Cash Out‘ service. The launch of Mobile Number Portability in mid-2011 has also been a catalyst for competition between players, with the number of portings by mid-2013 having increased University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 47 21% year-on-year. The time taken to port a number remains very fast by international standards (Ibid). Myjoyonline (2013) reports that the number of active mobile phone lines in Ghana as at November, 2012 stood at 25,344,745, which is slightly higher than the estimated population of Ghana, which stood at 25,241,998. Based on the above data the mobile penetration in Ghana therefore stands at 100.41%. 3.8 The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) The MOT was created in 1993 and was given the mandate to develop, promote and coordinate all tourism activities in Ghana. Since its creation, the functions of the ministry have been expanded to include the modernization of the capital city Accra which was later replaced with Diasporan Relations. Since 2013, the ministry is known as the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Industry. The MOT is the national tourism policy making body in Ghana with two implementing agencies – the Hotel, Tourism and Catering Training Institute (HOTCATT) and the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) which was formerly the Ghana Tourist Board (GTB). The ministry is headed by the Minister of Tourism. The president appoints the sector minister, who is then presented to Parliament for approval. The ministry has had four name changes since its creation: In 2003: The Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital city. In 2006: The Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations. In 2009: The Ministry of Tourism. In 2013: The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts. (Ghanaweb.com) 3.8.1 The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) The GTA was established in 2011 by the Parliament of Ghana Act 817 (Tourism Act, 2011) to be the main implementing body of the MOT. The GTA was established to replace the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 48 GTB, which was established in 1973 by the National Redemption Council (NRC) Decree 224 as amended by the Supreme Military Council (SMC) Decree 80 in 1977. The functions of the GTA include, implementation of policies developed by the MOT, regulation of tourism enterprises, promotion and marketing of tourism, facilitation of tourism product development and the conduct of research into tourism to aid policy making. The functions of the GTA are carried out through regional and district offices (Ghana Tourism Authority, 2011). 3.8.2 The Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) HATOF is the umbrella organization for all the private sector bodies involved in the tourism sector of Ghana. Its formation started in 1995 with the coming together of individual trade associations including operators of hotels, car rentals, and tour operators among others. The objective of GHATOF is to champion the cause of the private sector in the tourism sector of Ghana. Membership status of GHATOF comprises of associations registered and licensed by the GTA as well as non-registered and/or unlicensed associations that are granted affiliates status. Members include; Ghana Association of Travel and Tour Agents (GATTA), Tour Operators Union of Ghana (TOUGHA), Ghana Hotels Association, Tour Guides Association of Ghana (TGAG) and Ghana Traditional Caterers Association (GTCA) (GHATOF, 2007;Ghanaweb). 3.8.3 Ghana Hotel Association The Ghana Hotel Association was formed in 2000 by all the hotels in Ghana. The purpose is to collate and articulate the concerns of its members and to influence tourism policies. The motto of the association is ―AT YOUR SERVICE‖. The association has its head office in the capital city of Ghana, Accra. Membership is opened to all hotels, inns, home lodges, guest houses, or other accommodation enterprises. The association is headed by the national University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 49 president as Chairman being ably assisted by the first vice-president in charge of finance and administration, second vice-president in charge of operations, national secretary, and assistant national secretary. The association has the mandate of promoting the following: Education and training Training refers to a systematic approach to learning and development to improve individual, team, and organizational effectiveness (Appaw-Agbola, Afenyo-Dehlor&Agbola, 2011). Today the highly competitive market, in which business operates, requires a skillful workforce in order to remain a successful player in the competitive game of the hospitality industry. One of the main obstacles which occur in the workplace is the lack of training and development. Training is an essential process which should be cautiously designed and implemented within all firms. The overall aim of the association is to provide training and technical assistance to its membership. Empowering staff is one of the ways of training the staff. The most commonly used are the on-the-job and off-the-job training interventions. Specific courses for staff include safety at work, food and beverage service and mentoring. It was also identified that, staff are encouraged to go for further training to update their various skill levels (Appaw-Agbola, Afenyo-Dehlor&Agbola, 2011). Quality Standards: The level of quality, ranging from services and physical facilities should be provided across all areas with particular emphasis in the following areas: cleanliness, service, food, bedroom and bathroom. Research indicates that quality is of key importance but most times visitors expect the level of services and range of facilities to increase. The Ghana hotel association, as University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 50 part of their aim seeks to maintain quality standards in the hotel industry. (Ghana Hotel Association, 2000) 3.8.4 Contribution of the Tourism Sector Tourism dominates the economies of many countries and regions, for example, 6.2% of Switzerland‘s GDP, and over 11% of the European Union‘s GDP are generated from tourism (Chang, Khamkaew, &McAleer, 2009). In 2006 tourism generated revenue which exceeded $700 billion internationally (Ibid). Recreational and leisure tourism goes beyond revenue creation: it provides substantial employment opportunities, influences regional infrastructure, supports local industry, contributes to traffic congestion, influences freight movements, and encourages urban development (Chang, Khamkaew, &McAleer, 2009;Siaw&Ansah 2015). Siaw and Ansah (2015) argue that tourism industry has a dramatic impact on the world‘s economy and development. According to UNWTO (2009) and Chang, Khamkaew, and McAleer (2009) tourism industry is one of the fastest growing sectors of the global economy, accounting for more than one third of the global service trade. Between 1995 and 2008, international tourist arrivals have grown by 4.3 per cent (Ibid, 2009). Globalization and constantly falling relative cost of travel have contributed to the rapid growth of the sector (UNWTO, 2010). UNWTO (2010) reports that in 1950 the travel industry recorded 25 million international tourist arrivals while there were 277 million in 1980, 438 million in 1990, 684 million in 2000, 904 million in 2007 and 922 million in 2008. Since 1990, international arrivals have increased by 4.3 per cent annually. UNWTO (2010) expects a rise of 4 per cent per annum over the next 20 years. During the past 25 years, international tourist arrivals have increased about one percentage point faster than global GDP in real terms. According to UNWTO (2010) after an increase in University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 51 2008 (US$942 billion), international tourism receipts in 2009 decreased by 5.7 per cent in real terms to US$852 billion. According to the UNWTO (2010) the year 2009 marked a momentous decline in tourism activity due to the impact of the 2008-2009 global economic crises and the insecurity that surrounded the H1N1 pandemic. International tourism recorded tourist arrival of (-4%) and international tourism receipts of (-6%) (Ibid). However, in 2010, international tourism recovered strongly with an increase in international tourist arrivals of 7% to a record 940 million, while international tourism receipts growing slowly at 5% to reach US$ 919 billion (euro 693 billion) (UNWTO, 2010). UNWTO (2012) reports that international tourist arrivals reached a record 982 million, an increase of 4.6% on 2010, while receipts grew by 3.8% to US$ 1.030 billion (€ 740 billion). Contrary to previous years, growth in arrivals in 2011 was slightly faster in advanced economies (+4.8%) than in emerging ones (+4.3%), due to largely strong results in Europe and the setbacks in the Middle East and North Africa. International tourism receipts grew by 4% in real terms in 2012, hitting a new record of US$ 1,075 billion worldwide (euro 837 billion). This was reflected by the growth in international tourist arrivals, which also advanced 4%, and confirms the strong correlation between the two key indicators used in monitoring international tourism trends (UNWTO, 2013). In 2013, international tourist arrivals grew by 5% to reach a record of 1087 million arrivals worldwide, up from 1035 million in 2012, when the 1 billion mark was exceeded for the first time ever. Despite a global economy in ‗low gear‘, demand for international tourism exceeded expectations, with an additional 52 million international tourists travelling internationally in 2013 (UNWTO, 2013). International tourism receipts also growing 5% to reach 1087 million arrivals worldwide, up from 1035 million in 2012, when the 1 billion mark was exceeded for the first time ever. Despite a global economy in ‗low gear‘, demand University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 52 for international tourism exceeded expectations, with an additional 52 million international tourists travelling internationally in 2013 (Ibid, 2013). Christie, Fernandes, Messerli, and Twining-Ward (2014) observe that international tourists arrivals to Sub-Saharan Africa is growing, from a small number of 6.4 million visitors in 1990, the region attracted 30.7 million visitors in 2010. The region recorded an increase in tourist arrivals of 4.4%, while arrivals worldwide dropped to 3.8% between 2008 and 2009 (Ibid, 2014). Between 2009 and 2010, tourist arrivals to Sub-Saharan Africa increased 8 percent; the world average was 6.6 percent. Sub-Saharan Africa was the only region where the tourism sector grew during the world economic crisis, and the sector is expected to keep growing. Tourism is a job-intensive industry (UNWTO, 2011; Christie et al., 2014; Siaw&Ansah, 2015). WTTC (2012) reports that tourism has already created 5.3 million direct tourism jobs across Sub-Saharan Africa. The WTTC calculates that the total direct and indirect impact of tourism in Sub-Saharan Africa is 12.8 million jobs. In 2021 more than 16 million people are expected to be employed directly or indirectly as a result of travel and tourism (WTTC 2012). 3.8.5 Overview of Tourism in Ghana Over the past two decades, Ghana has spent considerable amount of resources in promoting tourism on the international front to gain foreign exchange earnings (Asiedu, 1997). Ghana offers new and unique attractions, which includes rich African cultural heritage, rain forest tourism, and conference tourism, Euro-African historical and monumental sites of the inhuman trans-Atlantic slave trade (Asiedu, 1997; Teye, 2000; Sirakaya, Teye&Sonmez, 2002). No serious efforts were made to harness these resources before 1985. Tourism industry in Ghana received outstanding turning point in the year 1985 as a potential viable industry in the national economy (Sirakaya, Teye&Sonmez, 2002). According to Asiedu University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 53 (1997) tourism in Ghana was accorded a priority status under the national investment code of 1985. The government established a Ministry of Tourism in 1993 to underscore its commitment to tourism development, and with assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Tourism Organisation (WTO), had prepared a 15-Year Tourism Development Plan for the period 1996 to 2010 (Sirakaya, Teye&Sonmez, 2002). Ghana moved up from seventeenth in 1985 to the eighth position in 1998 among the top 20 leading tourism revenue-earners in Africa (WTO, 1999). It is currently the fastest growing sector in the Ghanaian economy with the prospects for outperforming mining and cocoa as the country's largest foreign exchange earner (Asiedu, 1997; Teye, 2000; Sirakaya, Teye&Sonmez, 2002; Hinson &Boateng, 2007; Fatima, 2015). Currently, tourism in Ghana is the fourth foreign exchange earner after cocoa, gold and remittances (Mensah, 2009; Euromonitor, 2014; Fatima, 2015). International tourist arrivals in Ghana increased steadily from nearly 114,000 in 1988 to about 348,000 in 1998, an average annual growth rate of about 20%. IDC (2012) posits that international tourist arrivals increased from 428 533 in 2005 to 930 000 in 2010, largely attributable to the expanding number of air connections between Accra‘s Kotoka International Airport and destinations worldwide, which rose from 12 in 2005 to 24 in 2011. Business tourist arrivals increased from 92,840 in 2005 to 184,639 in 2009, whereas conference tourist arrivals rose from 36,687 to 72,250 over this period. Tourism receipts grew at an average annual rate of 41.3%, from $55.3 million in 1988 to $285 million in 1998 (GTB, 1999). According to GTB (2008) tourism earnings to the GDP of the country have been increased steadily for three consecutive years, from 4.9% of GDP in 2005, to 5.8% in 2006 and to 6.3% in 2007. According to IDC (2012) tourism is a rapidly growing industry in Ghana. The sector University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 54 has reported steady growth, with its turnover having risen from an estimated USD 836 million in 2005 to USD 1.88 billion by 2010. Both public and private investments in various tourism subsectors have expanded as well. The growth in tourism can also be seen in the expansion of activities in the hotel sector where the number of hotels approved and licensed by the Ghana Tourist Authority increased from only 273 in 1989 to 730 in 1998 (GTB, 1999). The number of rooms more than doubled from 4,851 in 1989 to 10,879 in 1998. In 2013 according to WTTC (2014) total tourism contribution to the GDP was 7.2% and was forecast to rise by 9.7% in 2014. Again, tourism total employment for 2013 was 124,500 jobs representing 2.3% of total employment and was expected to rise by 7.4% in 2014. GTA (2009) reports that the number of hotels in Ghana increased from 1,345 with 18,752 rooms in 2005 to 1,775 with 26,047 rooms in 2009. The largest concentration is found in Accra, particularly in the 5-star, 4-star and 3-star categories. Narteh, Agbemabiese, Kodua, and Braimah(2013) argue that FDIs have been attracted into the country due to the discovery and drilling of oil in commercial quantities in the last quarter of 2010. . International arrivals into the country reached an all-time high figure of 802,779 at the end of 2009, and the sector contributed 6.7% to GDP (GTA, 2009). The highest arrivals came from the United States, Ghanaians living abroad, United Kingdom, and Nigeria (Ibid, 2009). According to the Ghana Tourism Authority, there were 188 one-star hotels, 147 two-star hotels, 26 three-star hotels, 5 four-star hotels and 1 five-star hotel at the end of 2009. All the four- and five-star hotels are located in Accra, the capital city. There were also 26,047 rooms with 31,702 beds by the end of 2009. In terms of room occupancy, five-star and four-star hotels have received the highest customers, averaging between 80% and 95% between 2006 and 2009 (GTA, 2009). In 2012, Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) reports that Ghana has 11 ungraded hotels, 6 two- star hotels, 13 three-star hotels, 11 four-star hotels and 1 five-star hotel. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 55 CHAPTER FOUR RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.0 Introduction This chapter describes the research design and methodology of the study, including the population, sampling and sample, data collection and analysis, data-collection instrument, and ethical considerations. Quantitative researchers consult possible designs and select or develop one from the models available (De Vos, 2003). In this study, a cross-sectional design was adopted to solicit views from hotel managers, ICT managers, and marketing managers and all the staff or employees of various hotels on the factors that influence social media utilization and use by the hotel industry as a marketing communication tool. 4.1 The Purpose of the Research This study sought to find out the factors that influence the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana, the extent of use of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry and the possible outcomes of social media utilization in the hotel industry in Ghana. 4.2 Research Approach There are three main approaches/techniques in conducting a research and these are the qualitative approach, quantitative approach and mixed method approach (Creswell, 2008). This study employed quantitative method approach. Hair, Anderson, Tatham, and Black (1998), Alvesson and Skoldberg (2008) and Harwell (2011) explain that the quantitative study consists of standardized variables which describe people‗s experiences or opinions that are given numbers through usage of response alternatives that are determined before-hand. Christensen, Graas, and Haglund(2001) explain that the quantitative information is collected University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 56 through surveys, interviews and archive material, which is often presented in the form of tables, diagrams and graphs. Furthermore, it can be argued that the numeric focus allows the researches to analyse the variables in an objective way. Quantitative research measures the properties of phenomena systematically, using structured data-collection techniques, and requires that data collected be expressed in numbers; that is quantified (Babbie& Mouton 2003). In terms of justification, Malhotra and Birks (2007), contend that quantitative research approach is used to find the relationships that exist between variables. This study sought to find out the relationship between the factors influencing social media utilization and extent of social media usage in the hotel industry. The study adopted a quantitative approach, using regression and simple descriptive statistics to analyse the results from the respondents (Hair et al., 1998; Creswell, 2008; and Palinkas et al., 2013). There are limited quantitative empirical studies regarding organizational perspectives on social media and its incorporation into marketing communications. This study will seek to empirically gather the perspectives of the organization on, the factors that influence the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the hotel industry. 4.3 Research Design This study adopted a cross-sectional survey to elicit Managers perceptions of the factors influencing social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana. The study was conducted within the star-rated hotels in the Greater Accra Region. The study design, and the valid instrument used would help to find out the factors influencing social media utilization, the extent of use of social media, and the outcomes of social media utilization in the hotel industry. The following studies employed cross-sectional survey: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 57 Hinson and Amidu (2006) employed cross-sectional survey in a study internet adoption amongst final year studentsofUniversity of Ghana business school. Asase et al. (2009) came out with a cross-sectional survey of 660 households using structured questionnaire. Chien et al. (2013) conducted a cross-sectional survey in 2011 with 743 registered nurses randomly selected from four general hospitals in China. On their part Kiatrungrit and Hongsanguansri (2014) also adopted a cross-sectional study on the use of electronic media by secondary school students in Thailand. Again, Duke et al. (2014) research into the use of social media by state tobacco control programs to promote smoking cessation, which was also cross- sectional study. 4.4 Target Population According to De Vos (2005) and Malhotra and Dash (2011) population can be defined as any complete group of entities such as people, organizations, institutions, or the like that share some common set of characteristics in agreement with the purpose of the study under investigation and about which researchers want to be able to draw conclusions and plan to generalize.The study focused on executives within the star-rated hotels in the Greater Accra region of Ghana. The objective of the study was to find out the factors that influence social media utilization in the hotel industry in Ghana. Again, the study sought to solicit the views of hotel managers, IT managers, marketing managers, account managers and all the top management of the various hotels included in the sample within the Greater Accra Region. Managers are in charge of policy and strategy, hence the justification for targeting managers as the population of the study. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 58 4.5 Sources of Data and Data collection Method Data were collected from primary source. The primary data were sourced from questionnaire. The questionnaire were self-administered and divided into two sections. Section A was made up of items that elicited information on the factors influencing social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry in Ghana. The extent of social media utilization in the hotel industry. The level of engagement on social media platforms, and the outcomes of social media utilization and Section B contained bio data of respondents (Managers). The items were measured on a five point Likert scale- Strongly Disagree (1) point, Disagree (2) points, Neutral (3) points, Agree (4) points and Strongly Agree (5) points. In all, 150 questionnaires were administered to 150 managers from 30 hotels, 5 to each hotel. Out of the 150 questionnaires, 127 respondents returned the completed questionnaires representing 84% of the total number of questionnaires distributed were used for the analysis. 4.6 Questionnaire This study made use of questionnaires as the main instrument for primary data collection. The questionnaire that was designed for this study was developed after considering the information gathered from the literature. The questionnaire was divided into two parts: Part A dealt with the factors influencing social media utilization as a communication in the hotel industry, the rate of social media utilization as communication tool, the presence of hotels on the various social media platforms and the level of engagement with the customers; the most frequently use social media platform for social media campaigns; and the outcomes of social media utilization- global reach, electronic word-of-mouth, disseminating information faster, etc. The questions asked were closed-ended questions with five-point Likert scale. The respondents were asked to mark (√) or cross (×) to identify the answer they chose. The statements were short, using simple and plain language. Respondents were guided by a short University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 59 statement that briefly explained what the respondents were required to do in each part. The part B dealt with the biographic data of the respondent. Collis and Hussey (2003), contend that questionnaire is made to come out with the doing, thinking or feeling of selected group of individuals. The self-administered questionnaires were used mainly because of the following strengths (Kumar, 2005) Low-cost. Questionnaire is reasonably expedient and inexpensive compared with face-to-face interview, particularly when the sample is far away from the researcher. High anonymity. Questionnaire helps to gather accurate information when sensitive questions are asked. There is also less chance of influence or subjective bias by the researcher as the interviewer effect is eliminated. They are one of the most common methods of data collection, and are highly respected by researchers and are extremely useful as a method to reach a lot of people. The main shortcoming of using questionnaire has to do with low return rates due to the lassitude of respondents in taking the time to complete the questionnaire, and flawed results owing to misinterpretation of the questions (Leedy&Ormrod, 2005). 4.7 Pre-Test According toSaunders, Lewis, and Thornhill (2000); and Copper and Schindler (2001) pre- test of questionnaires is very important, it helps ensure the accuracy, correctness, appropriateness, reliability and validity before the final administration to obtain meaningful and quality information. To Saunders, Lewis, and Thornhill (2000) the main purpose of pre- University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 60 testing is to refine the questionnaire so that respondents will not have problems in answering the questions. Although the questionnaire was constructed from our research questions and an adopted model from literature, it was necessary to pre-test the research instrument to curtail any unforeseen ambiguity. Pre-testing in this study was done in two phases; the first phase which was the initial draft of the questionnaire was reviewed by three MPhil students in the marketing department and three PhD students in a face-to-face interview to access the content and constructions. They checked whether the instrument was clearly worded, free from major biases, and appropriate for the type of information needed. The second phase of pre-testing was performed with two IT managers and four HR managers of some selected hotels to improve the questionnaire before agreeing on the final questionnaire with my supervisor. The final questionnaire was administered to managers of the sample hotels in the Greater Accra Region. Prior to the questionnaires administration letters and emails were sent to the Human Resource Managers of selected hotels, followed up with phone calls to book a date to send the questionnaires for administration. 4.8 Sample The study adopted both probability and non-probability sampling techniques for this study.Simple random sampling was used to select the 30 hotels from 260 star rated hotels through the lottery system (Freedman, 2005). Simple random sampling has the power to reduce human bias and provides a sample that is highly representative of the population (Freedman, 2005).Purposive sampling was employed in targeting the hotel managers. The justification for using purposive sampling lies in the fact that, according to Mack, Woodsong, MacQueen, Guest and Namey (2005) and Palinkas et al. (2013) purposive sampling may be used with both qualitative and quantitative research techniques. Those who are not suitable for the sampling study or who do not fit the bill would be eliminated, so only the most University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 61 suitable candidates remain and again, it saves time, money and effort (Patton, 1990). For example purposive sample was used in the following studies: Neupane and Thapa (2001) use survey to sample 223 households on the impact of agroforestry intervention on soil fertility and farm income under the subsistence farming system of the Middle Hills in Nepal. Also, Zhen, Zoebisch, Chen, and Feng(2006) use questionnaires to sample 270 households on sustainability of farmers‘ soil fertility management practices: a case in the North China Plain. Again, in 2002, Neupane, Shaarma, and Thapa(2002) use survey to sample 233 households on adoption of agroforestry in the hills of Nepal. Statistical analysis such as logistic regression analysis (Neupane et al., 2002) used purposive sampling. 4.9 Data Analysis Based on the conceptual model which was adapted from Bulankulama, KhatibiandHerath(2014), this study adopted a multiple regression model which was used to assess the impact of each of the factors influencing social media utilization as predictor variables on the level of social media utilization as the response variable to enable the researcher achieve the first objective. For the second and third objectives, frequency tables and histograms were used to analyse available data. 4.9.0 Regression analysis 4.9.1 Assumptions The least square method for regression analysis will be used and as such it is expected that the following assumption underlining the least square method will be strictly adhered to. 1. Linearity: The relationships between response and each of the predictor variables are linear in the parameters of the specific functional form chosen 2. Zero mean: Each conditional distribution of the error term has a mean of zero University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 62 3. Homoscedasticity: The variance of the conditional distribution of error term is constant for all such distributions where the variance is not constant; we have a situation of heteroscedasticity. 4. Independence: The values of the error term are serially independent; thus the values of error term are independent of each other and their covariance is accordingly zero 5. Multi-collinearity: The predictor variables are linearly independent of each other. They are non-multi-collinear 6. Normality assumption: The error term is normally distributed with mean 0 and a constant variance 4.9.2 Variables SMU: is the dependent variable indication the level of utilization of social media HS: independent variable showing the level of impact of human skills on social media utilization CF: independent variable showing the level of impact of cost factors on social media utilization ICT: independent variable showing the level of impact of ICT infrastructure on social media utilization MS: independent variable showing the level of impact of management style on social media utilization SC: independent variable showing the level of impact of cultural factors on social media utilization Comp: independent variable showing the level of competition resource on social media utilization University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 63 RC: a dummy variable showing respondent category with the value 1 when respondent is a hotel Male and 2 otherwise. 4.9.3 Model specification 4.94 Testing for Parameter Significance The following hypotheses will be tested with respect to the parameters of each of the independent variables Null hypotheses Alternative hypothesis The null hypotheses states that there is no significant relationship between any of the independent variables and the response variable against the alternative hypotheses that there is a significant relationship between any of the independent variables and the response variable. 4.9.5 Testing for Model Significance It is very important to be sure that the estimated model for the multiple regressions is well fitted before it is used to make decision and future predictions. The parameters of each of the independent variables could appear to be significant but that is not enough confirmation that the model is good. There is therefore the need to test for the significance of the combined effects of all the independent variables used in the specification of the regression model. The following null and alternative hypothesis will be tested for the significance of the model Null: H0: Alternative H1: At least one of the p- value approach will be used to test the above hypotheses University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 64 It is worth stating that the coefficient of determination will also be used to estimate the extent to which the response variable is explained by the independent variables. 4.9.6 Model Diagnostics Several assumptions underlining the use of ordinary least square method (OLS) in linear regression have been made, some of them are very important that it is required that they are satisfied before any meaningful analysis can be made. Outlined in the table below are the procedures that will be followed to verify these assumptions: Table4.2:Assumptions in Linear Regression Assumption Test Normality Jarque-Bera test Heteroscedasticity White heteroscedasticity test Autocorrelation Autocorrelation plot Multicollinearity Correlation matrix 4.9.7 Frequency Tables and Histograms To achieve the second and third objectives, frequency tables as well as histograms will be used to do the analysis. A frequency table showing responses of respondent indicating their opinions on a five point Likert scale on the extent of usage of social media in the hotel industry in Ghana should give a clear picture on the level of adoption of social media in the industry. A histogram showing responses for various outcomes of social media adoption will also do well in helping the researcher to interpret the possible outcomes for adopting social media in the hotel industry. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 65 4.9.8 Limitation of the study There are a number of limitations within this study: Geography- the study was conducted within the hotel industry in the Greater Accra Region. The study focused on only rated hotels in the Greater Accra Region. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 66 CHAPTER FIVE DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 5.0 Introduction This chapter deals with the analysis of data collected from the respondents. The chapter discusses the factors influencing social media utilization in the hotel industry, the extent of social media utilization in the hotel industry, the level of engagement on social media platform, the level of social media utilization in the hotel industry. In addition the data was used to determine the most frequently used social media platform for customer engagement, and the outcomes of social media utilization. Table 5.1, below is a frequency table detailing the breakdown of each of the demographic variables into frequencies and percentages. Of the 127 managers sampled, 62 respondents (48.8 per cent) were males whiles 66 respondents (51.1 per cent) were females. With regards to age, 50 respondents (39.4 per cent) were between the ages of 18-30 years. 44 respondents (51.2 per cent) fell between the ages of 30-45 years, and 12 respondents (9.4 per cent) were 45 years and above. In education, 44 respondents (34.6 per cent) were HND holders. 39 respondents (30.7 per cent) were Degree holders, 43 respondents (33.9 per cent) were Master‘s Holders, and only 1 respondent (0.8 per cent) had PhD. In terms of Position, 22 respondents (17.3 per cent) were IT managers, 44 respondents (34.6) were marketing managers, 20 respondents (15.7 per cent) were Human resource managers, and 20 managers (15.7 per cent) were Account managers. Again 21 managers (16.5 per cent) were Procurement managers. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 67 Table 5.1: Demographic Variables Variables Frequency Percent Gender Male 62 48.8 Female 65 51.1 Age 18-30 50 39.4 30-45 65 51.2 45+ 12 9.4 Education HND 44 34.6 Degree 39 30.7 Masters 43 33.9 Doctorate 1 0.8 Position IT Manager 22 17.3 Marketing Manager 44 34.6 Human Skills 20 15.7 Accounts Manager 20 15.7 Procurement Manager 21 16.5 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 5.1 Varimax Rotation and Reliability of the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) The twenty four (24) variables were later rotated using the Varimax rotation as the extraction method. The results revealed that twenty-three (23) variables loaded perfectly onto six factors; an indication that one (1) of the initial variables failed to meet the rotation criteria. Out of the remaining 23 variables, factor one had 4 variables all relating to culture; factor two had 4 variables all relating to cost; factor three had 3 variables all relating to competition; factor four had 4 variables with managerial style whiles factor five had 4 items all relating to Human resource. The final factor six had 4 items all relating to ICT infrastructure. On the basis of these, factors one, two, four and five were retained without modification whiles factor three was amended. The internal reliability of the seven factors was analyzed through Cronbach‘s alpha coefficient. Only factors that met the minimum value of 0.7 as suggested (by Cronbach) were accepted for further analysis. Also, item–to total correlation was set above 0.3 (Hair et al, 2010). On the basis of these processes, 23 variable items remained in University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 68 the final structure for further analysis. The results of the rotation for the independent variables have been displayed in table 5.2 below. Table 5.2: Internal consistency and related decisions Loadings No. of Items Cronbach’s Alpha Factor 1-Culture 4 .847 Religion can influence social media utilization .840 Language can influence social media utilization .875 Level of education can influence social media utilization .790 Peer influence can also influence social media utilization .840 Factor 2-Cost 4 .795 Internet charges can influence social media utilization .844 Quality of internet service can influence social media utilization .786 Income levels can influence social media utilization .840 Pre-pay systems can influence social media utilization .560 Factor 3- Competition 3 .821 Growth of mobile networks can influence social media utilization .809 Quality of internet service providers can influence social media utilization .866 Quality of internet service providers can influence social media utilization .866 Factor 4-Managerial Style 4 .854 CEO's attitude toward IT can influence social media utilization .640 CEO's interest in IT can influence social media utilization .844 CEO's age can influence social media utilization .786 Management support can influence social media utilization .740 Factor 5-Human Resource 4 821 Knowledge of staff can influence social media utilization .845 ICT skills of staff can influence social media utilization .876 Staff training on social media can influence social media utilization .790 Excellent delivery of services can influence social media utilization .740 Factor 6-IT Infrastructure 4 875 Growth of ICT infrastructure .844 Availability of internet facility can influence social media utilization .786 Customers adoption of smart phones and tablets can influence social media utilization .560 Customers usage of internet can influence social media utilization .740 Source: Field Survery, March 2015 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 69 5.2 Reliability of the Dependent Variable The reliability of the scales used for the dependent variable were also assessed and found to be appropriate. Three out of the four variables had high loadings and loaded perfectly on the dependent variable with a very excellent Cronbach‘s alpha of .879. This is an indication that the statements used for the dependent variable form a complete structure in describing social media utilization. The results have been summarized in table 5 below. From the table 5.3Cronbach‘s alpha coefficient results, it is clear that all the scales for the independent variables as well as those for the dependent variable exceeded the conventional acceptable 0.6, and thus proved to be adequate for multiple regression analysis. Table 5.3:Reliability of scales for dependent variables Variables Loadings No. Items Cronbach’s alpha Extent of social media utilization 4 .797 Extent of use of social media utilization as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. .879 What is the presence of hotels on social media .511 The level of utilization of social media in the hotel industry. .760 What is the level of engagement on social media .837 5.3 Regression Analysis Perceptions are often measured using Likert type questions which may not allow for any parametric analysis such as ANOVA and regression but asking several Likert questions under a single item and summing or taking average converts Likert type data to Likert scale data which could be analysed parametrically (Frost, 2013). The study adopted this approach by University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 70 asking four Likert type questions under each of the factors (Cultural, Cost, Competition, Managerial Style, Human Skills and IT infrastructure) and the dependent variables (Frost, 2013). A regression analysis carried out on the factors influencing social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry revealed that the parameter estimates of COST, CULTURE, HUMAN SKILLS and IT INFRASTRUCTURE were significant. For instance cost has a coefficient of (-0.176) units indicating that when people‘s perception about cost changes by a unit, the impact on the Usage of Social media will change by (0.176). This estimate has a t-statistic of 3.747 and is significant at 5% level of significance since it has a p- value of 0.000 which is less than 0.05. COMPETITION and MANAGERIAL STYLE have positive coefficient indicating that higher levels of competition and better managerial attitude could really promote a higher level of utilization of social media in the hotel industry even though these estimates had p-values greater than 0.05 which means that they are not significant but the researcher sees the positive relation between the two factors and the level of usage as generally informative. The regression equation is estimated based on the parameters is as shown below The F statistic which is used to test for the significance of the entire estimated model by taking all the coefficients together is 0.000. With this value the null hypothesis that the coefficients are all together NOT significant IS REJECTED. The model also has an R- squared value of 23.17% indicating that only about 23% of the variability in the usage of social media has been captured by this model implying that a model with several predictor variables could perform better than this one. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 71 Table 5.4: Regression Model for the factors influencing social media utilization Variable β Std. Error t-Statistic Prob. Constant 1.121673 0.299353 3.746996 0.0002 COST -0.175569 0.042086 -4.171679 0.0000 CULT -0.081674 0.030392 -2.687337 0.0079 COMP 0.071747 0.069067 1.038811 0.3004 HUMAN_SK -0.213697 0.061469 -3.476478 0.0007 MGT_ST 0.030974 0.056437 0.548818 0.5839 IT 0.177687 0.051193 3.470951 0.0007 R-squared 0.231726 Adjusted R-squared 0.203619 S.E. of regression 0.445786 Sum squared resid 32.59098 F-statistic 8.244261 Prob(F-statistic) 0.000000 5.4 Model Diagnosis The regression model was constructed and estimated based on certain assumptions, the researcher decided to perform a diagnosis to see if some of the assumptions were satisfied. 5.5.1 Normality Test The study assumed that the errors in the model were normally distributed and decided to test for normality using the histogram and the Jarque-Bera statistic. In this test, the null hypothesis is that the errors are normally distributed. As shown below the histogram is not bell-shaped and the Jarque-Bera statistic of 9.376 is significant at 0.05 level of significance all confirming that the errors are not normally distributed. With a sample size of 127 respondents, the researcher held onto the central limit theorem and the law of large numbers. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 72 With the law of large numbers the average of a random sample will converge to the population mean and the central limit theorem posits that the sample mean converges to a normal distribution 5.5.2 Heteroskedasticity Test It is assumed that the variance of the disturbance term remains constant throughout the sample in which case they are homoscedastic or else heteroskedaticity exist. To verify this a null hypothesis. Table 5.5Heteroskedasticity Test: White F-statistic 9.110561 Prob. F(27,143) 0.0000 Obs*R-squared 108.1364 Prob. Chi-Square(27) 0.0000 Scaled explained SS 42.51099 Prob. Chi-Square(27) 0.0293 5.5.3 Assessing the Level of Correlation between Variables Table 5.6: Assessing the Level of Correlation between Variables USAG COST CULT COMP HUMAN_SK MGT_ST IT USAG 1 COST -0.34 1.00 CULT -0.24 0.29 1.00 COMP -0.14 0.63 0.32 1.00 HUMAN_SK -0.27 0.61 0.28 0.65 1.00 MGT_ST -0.06 0.43 0.20 0.68 0.67 1.00 IT -0.04 0.51 0.34 0.65 0.68 0.69 1.00 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 73 As shown in Table 5.7, the respondents were asked the question relating to the extent of social media utilization as a marketing communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. Sixty respondents (47.3 per cent) indicated social media utilization in the hotel industry is very low. Thirty respondents (23.6 per cent) indicated social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry is low, 10 respondents (7.9 per cent) were undecided, while 20 respondents (15.7 per cent) indicated social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry is high. 7 respondents (5.5 per cent) said social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry is very high. Table 5.7:Extent of social media utilization as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel Frequency Percent Very Low 60 47.3 Low 30 23.6 Neutral 10 7.9 High 20 15.7 Very High 7 5.5 Total 127 100.0 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 As shown in Table 5.8, the respondents were asked the question relating to the presence of hotels on the social media platforms. 8 (8.6 per cent) indicated that, the presence of hotels on social media platforms is very low. 21 (16.5 per cent) said they are undecided so far as presence of hotels on social media platforms is concerned. 76 respondents (59.8 per cent) said the presence of hotels on social media platforms is high, while 19 respondents (15.0 per cent) indicated the presence of hotels on social media platforms is very high. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 74 Table 5.8:Presence of hotels on the social media platforms Frequency Percent Low 11 8.6 Neutral 21 16.5 High 76 59.8 Very High 19 15.0 Total 127.0 100.0 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 From Table 5.8, the respondents were asked the question related to the level of social media utilization in the hotel industry. From the findings, it was observed that 48 respondents (37.8 per cent) noted that utilization is very low, 30 respondents (23.6 per cent) indicated that utilization is low. 14 respondents (11.0 per cent) were silent on the issue. While 20 respondents (15.7 per cent) said that the utilization is high, and 15 respondents (11.8 per cent) were of the view that the utilization is very high. Table 5.9: Level of social media utilization in the hotel industry Frequency Percent Very Low 48 37.8 Low 30 23.6 Neutral 14 11.1 High 20 15.7 Very High 15 11.8 Total 127 100.0 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 75 In Table 5.9, the respondents were asked the question relating to the level of engagement on social media platforms by the hotels. As it can be seen from the table below 43 respondents (33.9 per cent) indicated that the level of engagement is very low. 36 respondents (28.3 per cent) said low. So the overall level of engagement on social media platform by the hotels is very low. Table 5.10:The level of engagement on social media platforms Frequency Percent Very Low 43 33.9 Low 36 28.3 Neutral 17 13.4 High 23 18.1 Very High 8 6.3 Total 127 100.0 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 Table 5.11, the respondents were asked the question relating the most frequently used social media network for social media campaigns, as it can be seen, the table reports the mean and standard deviation of each of the social media networks. The most frequently used social media network for social media campaigns in the Ghanaian hotel industry is Facebook. It has the highest mean of 4.1813, followed by Twitter with 3.6023, followed by LinkedIn with 3.0292, then with YouTube 2.8596 lastly Flickr with 2.5556. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 76 Table 5.11: The most frequently used social media network for social media campaigns Social Media Network Number Mean Std. Deviation Facebook 127 4.1813 .90547 Twitter 127 3.6023 .97305 LinkedIn 127 3.0292 1.28075 YouTube 127 2.8596 .95988 Flickr 127 2.5556 1.12256 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 Table 5.12,below shows the outcomes of social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry. The table reports the mean and standard deviation of each of the outcomes of social media utilization. From the mean score, social media utilization helps hotel establishment in Brand building with highest mean score of 4.2281. It was followed by reaching global audience with a mean score of 4.0819, followed by Real-time information/speedof feedback with a mean score of 4.0526. On the lower side of the table spreading false information had a mean score of 3.0936, followed by Negative comments/ undue criticisms with a mean score of 2.8480, then Damaging Company‘s reputation coming last with a mean score of 2.6199. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 77 Table 5.12: Outcomes of social media utilization Outcomes of social media utilization Number Mean Std. Deviation 1 Brand building 127 4.2281 .75966 2 Reaching global audience 127 4.0819 .95441 3 Real-time information/speed of feedback 127 4.0526 .93471 4 Enhancing customer satisfaction 127 4.0468 .80303 5 Disseminating information faster 127 3.9532 .85964 6 Increasing visibility 127 3.9064 .78404 7 Obtaining feedback 127 3.8706 1.02960 8 Positive electronic word-of-mouth 127 3.8596 1.00186 9 Low cost of operation/cost effectiveness 127 3.8129 .90102 10 Spread of false information 127 3.0936 1.33395 11 Negative comments/ undue criticisms 127 2.8480 1.26966 12 Spammers 127 2.8070 1.29395 13 Exposing trade secrets 127 2.7310 1.20691 14 Damaging company's reputation 127 2.6199 1.22784 Source: Field Survey, March, 2015 5.6 Discussion of Major Findings The extent of social media utilization in the hotel industry as a marketing communication tool. The results indicate that the extent of social media usage in the Ghanaian hotel industry is low. The findings from this study are consistent with results from previous studies by O‘Connor (2011) and Vidovic (2012) who found out that the hotels are not harnessing the full potential of social media; even when present on social media channels their use is very basic. That is hotels are thus, missing out on valuable opportunities to interact and engage University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 78 with customers (O‘Connor, 2011). Though the social media usage in the Ghanaian hotel industry is low, the results also found that hotels have their presence on multiple social media channels. The big challenge is actually gaining visibility with the social media audience as revealed by O‘connor (2011). Even though Aggarwal (2011) contends hotels can increase their online visibility by participating in several social media channels. This study found that the hotels have high presence on Social Media platforms (72%), but are suffering from low levels of visibility, activity and engagement.The study also revealed that the most frequently used social media network for social media campaigns in the Ghanaian hotel industry is Facebook. It has the highest mean score of 4.1, followed by Twitter with 3.6, followed by LinkedIn with 3.0, then with YouTube 2.8 lastly Flickr with 2.5. The results confirms the findings of Buted et al. (2014) who found that Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube are the most frequently used social media channels by the hotel industry. The objective (II) of this study sought to find out the factors influencing social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry as a marketing communication tool. The conceptual framework for social media utilization in this study was adapted from Bulankulama, Khatibi, and Herath (2014). The factors that influence social media utilization include the following Cost, Culture, Competition, Human skills, Managerial style and IT infrastructure. A regression analysis carried out on the factors influencing social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry revealed that the parameter estimates of COST, CULTURE, HUMAN SKILLS and IT INFRASTRUCTURE were significant. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 79 Cost The results indicate that Cost has a significant impact on the utilization of social media (β= - 0.176, p=0.0000 <0.05). This is consistent with previous research which found that social media utilization is influenced by cost (Baldwin & Lin, 2002; Foster &Rosenzweig, 2010). Competition and Managerial style In contrast, Competition (β= 0.071, p=0.3004 > 0.05 and Managerial style (β= 0.0309, p =0.5839 > 0.05 were found to have no significance influence in the social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry. This is inconsistent with literature findings regarding the use of social media (technology). A number of studies have shown that competitive pressure influences the utilization of innovation such as social media (Leue, Jung & Knowles, 2013). Yang, Lee and Lee (2007) argue that management style factors, such as the CEO‘s attitude and interest toward ICT, ICT evaluation period and initial implementation time, and the CEO‘s age and attitude toward change are important to promote technology utilization. Possible reasons for these outcomes could be due to the way management support technology innovations. Again, may be due to how the industry has been structured. With COMPETITION and MANAGERIAL STYLE having positive coefficient indicate that higher levels of competition and better managerial attitude could really promote a higher level of utilization of social media in the hotel industry even though these estimates had p- values greater than 0.05 which means that they are not significant but this study sees the positive relation between the two factors and the level of usage as generally informative. Culture The results found that there is a strong influence between culture and social media utilization (β= -0.082, p =0.0079 <0.05. The finding here is in harmony with previous research by University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 80 Herbig and Dunphy (1998) that suggest that existing cultural conditions are factors of diffusion of an innovative technology. This implies that technology utilization may be influenced by cultural differences (Eseonu&Egbue, 2014). According to Eseonu and Egbue (2014) the differences in infrastructural and other institutional supports, and cultural and social norms, technology driven development in developing countries such as Ghana and Nigeria, varies significantly from developed countries such as the US and UK. ICT Infrastructure The results indicate that ICT infrastructure has a significant impact on the utilization of social media (β= 0.1776, p =0.0007 <0.05. The findings support the work of Jan, Abdullah and Momen (2015) who found that technological advancement in the Information and Communication technologies (ICT) make it possible for people to interact virtually. In addition, ICT is one of the many factors that have influenced users‘ utilization of Social Networking (Fotis, Buhalis&Rossides, 2011). Millions of people worldwide are using Social Networking daily (Kaplan &Haenlein, 2010; O‘Connor, 2011). There are thousands of Social Networking Sites available in many countries with different languages for various purposes (Hawkin, Bulmer & Eagle, 2011). The newer advanced technologies include Smart mobile phone and the broadband Internet. This technological advancement has indirectly revolutionized peoples‘ daily activities, pattern of interaction, behaviour and life style (Jan, Abdullah and Momen, 2015). ICT is a supporter of innovation in the hospitality industry (Mihalic&Buhalis, 2013). Human Skills The findings in this study further confirms that there is a link between human skills and social media utilization in the hotel industry in Ghana (β= -0.214, p = 0.0007 < 0.05. The findings University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 81 support the view that human skills influence technology innovation (Alvaro & Jose, 2011). Similarly, the result also confirms the findings of Bulankulama, Khatibi, and Herath (2014) who found that human skills is one of the most important factors influencing social media utilization in the hotel industry. The final objective (III) sought to find out the outcomes of social media utilization in the hotel industry as a marketing communication tool. The results indicate that social media utilization helps to build hotel brands. The findings support the previous research by Aggarwal (2011) and Buted et al. (2014) who found that Social media offers the opportunity to increase the amount of positive electronic word of mouth and to build a loyal customer base. Also, the results confirm previous research which found that Social media offers a company the opportunity to reach out and talk to its current and potential customers (O‘Connor, 2011). Similarly, the results suggest that social media is the most cost-effective marketing communication tool today also confirming the works of Aggarwal (2011) and Mahmood (2012). Furthermore, the findings revealed that social media participation by the hotels help in reaching global audience (O‘Connor, 2011; Buted et al., 2014). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 82 CHAPTER SIX SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 6.0 Introduction The goal of this study was to find out the factors that influence social media utilization as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. With this discussion, we believe there are some critical take-away. Companies would have the opportunity to listen to their customers, and begin to exploring what a social media presence can and will mean to their industry. It is about engagement. It is about building the brand. And it is about embracing a new, swifter way of doing business. 6.1 Summary In this thesis, the researcher analysed the following mediums: the extent of social media utilization, the most frequently used social media channel, the factors that influence social media utilization, and the outcomes of utilizing social media in the Ghanaian hotel industry. The study revealed that Ghanaian hotels are present on multiple social media channels; overall their use of social media is low. Ghanaian hotels are suffering from low levels of visibility, activity and engagement and need to take substantial action if they are to fully exploit the potential of Social Media. A regression analysis carried out on the factors influencing social media utilization as a communication tool in the hotel industry revealed that the parameter estimates of COST, CULTURE, HUMAN SKILLS and IT INFRASTRUCTURE were significant. Consistent with existing findings, the study revealed that these four constructs are necessary predictors of social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry. With COMPETITION and MANAGERIAL STYLE having positive coefficient indicate that higher levels of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 83 competition and better managerial attitude could really promote a higher level of utilization of social media in the hotel industry even though these estimates had p-values greater than 0.05 which means that they are not significant but this study sees the positive relation between the two factors and the level of usage as generally informative. The study acknowledges that businesses can really benefit from social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Social media utilization helps to build hotel brands. The study revealed that social media offers the opportunity to increase the amount of positive electronic word of mouth and to build a loyal customer base. Similarly, the results suggest that social media is the most cost-effective marketing communication tool today. Furthermore, the findings revealed that social media participation by the hotels help in reaching global audience. 6.2 Conclusions The study sought to find out the factors influencing social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry among the star-rated hotels.In all 30 star-rated hotels within Greater Accra were selected for the study. Ghanaian hotels are suffering from low levels of visibility, activity and engagement and need to take substantial action if they are to fully exploit the potential of Social Media. Again, the parameter estimates of COST, CULTURE, HUMAN SKILLS and IT INFRASTRUCTURE were significant, predictors of social media utilization. The study then contributes to the literature on hotel marketing communication. It has been argued that theories developed in the Western societies do not always apply in developing countries (Thuy&Hau, 2010). In this instance, competition and managerial style were not significant predictors of social media utilization in the Ghanaian context. Social media have a better chance to build hotel brands, increase positive word of mouth and customer loyalty. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 84 Again, constant engagement with customers will increase the visibility of hotel brands on the social media channels. The three research questions were also answered in the course of the study. RQ1: What is the extent of social media utilization as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry? This question is answered by the fact social media is changing the way information and knowledge is shared in real time. Now organizations realize the need to engage customers on social media platforms. However, there is still a need to stay ahead of the rapidly shifting marketing and communications landscape by integrating social media into traditional strategies to reach out to B2B and B2C audiences (Aggarwal, 2011). According to the results of the study, the use of social media in the Ghanaian hotel industry is low. However, Ghanaian hotels have their presence on multiple social media platforms. Again, the results indicated that the visibility of hotels on social media is also low (O‘Connor, 2011). The study also revealed that Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn were the most well-known and popular social media sites frequently used for social media campaigns in the hotel industry. RQ2: What factors influence the utilization of social media as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry? This is answered by the regression results which revealed that, the parameter estimates of cost, human skills, cultural factors and IT infrastructure are the main factors influencing social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry. However, the findings revealed that competition and managerial style were not significant predictors of social media utilization in the hotel industry in Ghana. But, the study explains that the factors: cost, cultural factors, IT infrastructure, human skills, managerial style, and competition should not be seen in University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 85 isolation, but rather as interacting factors influencing social media utilization in the Ghanaian hotel industry. RQ3: What are the outcomes of utilizing social media as a communication tool in the hotel Ghanaian industry? The outcomes of utilizing social media as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry are as follows; 1. Building hotel brands on social media channels 2. Electronic world-of-mouth 3. Low cost of operation 4. Reaching global audience 5. Increasing visibility on social media platforms. 6.3 Recommendations 1. First, there should be a social media utilization policy formulation that will get all stakeholders involve to promote social media awareness in the Ghanaian hotel industry. 2. Second, there should be a well-planned and organized procedure for implementing social media campaigns. 3. Third, management should facilitate and support social usage among internal and external customers to reduce cost of operation. 4. Fourth, there is the need to invest in IT infrastructure within the hotel industry to boost social media utilization. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 86 6.4 Limitations and Future Research Like all research, this study suffers from several limitations. First, the geographical scope of the study was very limited, examining only a single hotel market, which obviously affects the ability to generalize the study‘s findings. Future studies should include multiple markets, which will not only improve the validity of the findings. Second, the study focused on the rated hotels, future research can enlarge the scope to include small hotels. More research is needed to find out the factors influencing social media utilization in other sectors of the economy. Further quantitative research is needed to follow up on and validate the findings from the customers‘ perspective. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 87 References Aaker, D. A. (1996).Building strong brands. London: Simon & Schuster UK Ltd. Ab Hamid, N. R., Razak, U. T. A., Akhir, R. M., & Cheng, A. Y. (2013). Social media: an emerging dimension of marketing communication. Journal of management and marketing research, 12(4), 1-8. Aggarwal, A. (2011). Monitoring and managing online reviews. In-depth interview with Anil. Ahiawodzi, K.A. (2013). Tourism earnings and economic growth in Ghana.British journal of economics, finance and management sciences, Vol. 7 (2). Ahlberg, J. R. (2010). Marketing through social media-case: comparison of social media marketing approaches of b2c companies for company X'(Doctoral dissertation, Master Thesis, Kemi-Tornio University of applied sciences, Torino). Ahlqvist, T., Bäck, A., Heinonen, S., &Halonen, M. (2010).Road-mapping the societal transformation potential of social media.Foresight, 12(5), 3–26. Akyeampong, O. A. (2007). Tourism in Ghana: The accommodation sub-sector. Accra: Janel. Alemna, A. A., & Sam, J. (2006). Critical issues in information and communication technologies for rural development in Ghana. Information development, 22(4), 236- 241. Al-Khalifa, H. S., & Al-Salman, A. S. (2006). From web 1.0 to web 2.0 and beyond: is the web becoming more accessible for people with visual impairments?.IniiWAS (pp. 145- 154). Almeida, F. (2012). Web 2.0 technologies and social networking security fears in enterprises. arXiv preprint arXiv:1204.1824. Altman, I., & Taylor, D. A. (1973). Social penetration: The development of interpersonal relationships. Holt, Rinehart & Winston. Alvaro, G.V., & José L. C. (2011).A study on the factors that influence innovation activities of Spanish big firms. Technology and Investment, 2011. Alvesson, M.,&Sköldberg, K. (2008).Tolkningochreflektion – Veteskapsfilosofiochkvalitativmetod, 2nd edition, Studentlitteratur, Denmark. Anderson, C. (2006). The long tail: why the future of business is selling less of more. New York, NY: Hyperion Andonova, V. (2006).Mobile phones, the internet and the institutional environment. Telecommunications Policy, 30(1), 29-45. Andzulis, J. M., Panagopoulos, N. G., & Rapp, A. (2012).A review of social media and implications for the sales process.Journal of personal selling & sales management, 32(3), 305-316. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 88 Appaw-Agbola, E. T., Afenyo-Dehlor, S., &Agbola, A. K. (2011). Human resource issues in the development of tourism in Ghana: A survey of small/medium hotels in the Volta region. World Review of Business Research, 1(1), 115-31. Asase, M., Yanful, E. K., Mensah, M., Stanford, J., &Amponsah, S. (2009). Comparison of municipal solid waste management systems in Canada and Ghana: A case study of the cities of London, Ontario, and Kumasi, Ghana. Waste management, 29(10), 2779- 2786. Asiedu, A. B. (1997). Prospects for an emerging tourism industry in Ghana.Research review, 13(3). Assenov, I., &Khurana, N. (2012). Social media marketing and the hospitality industry: Evidence from Thailand. In Int. conf. on business and management, Phuket, Thailand (pp. 325-335). Babbie, E & Mouton, J. (2003).The practice of social research.South African edition. Cape Town: Oxford University Press Southern Africa. Baldwin, J., & Lin, Z. (2002).Impediments to advanced technology adoption for Canadian manufacturers. Research policy, 31(1), 1-18. Barsky, E. (2006). Introducing web 2.0: RSS trends for health librarians. Journal of Canadian health library association.27 (2), 7–8. Bartlett, A. (2002). ICT and IMPM.Infarmers, FAO and Field Schools. Rome: FAO. Benevenuto, F., Rodrigues, T., Almeida, V., Almeida, J., Zhang, C., & Ross, K. (2008, April).Identifying video spammers in online social networks.InProceedings of the 4th international workshop on Adversarial information retrieval on the web (pp. 45-52). Berners-Lee, T., Hendler, J &Lassila, O. (2001).The semantic web.scientific American, May 2001. Berthon, P.R., Pitt, L.F., Plangger, K., &Shapiro, D. (2012). Marketing meets web 2.0, social media, and creative consumers: Implications for international marketing strategy. Business Horizons, 55(3), 261–271. Bertot, J.C., Jaeger, P.T., & Hansen, D. (2012). The impact of polices on government social media usage: Issues, challenges, and recommendations. Government information quarterly, 29(1), 30–40. Bidgoli, H. (2004). The internet encyclopedia (Vol. 3).John Wiley & Sons. Boateng, H. (2014). Customer knowledge management practices on a social media platform a case study of MTN Ghana and Vodafone Ghana. Information Development, 0266666914554723. Bohringer, M. (2009). Really social syndication: A conceptual view on microblogging. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 89 Bonsón, E., Torres, L., Royo, S., & Flores, F. (2012). Local e-government 2.0: Social media and corporate transparency in municipalities. Government Information Quarterly, 29(2), 123–132. Bosch, T. (2012). Blogging and tweeting climate change in South Africa.Ecquid Novi: African Journalism Studies, 33(1), 44-53. Boyd, D. M., & Ellison, N. B. (2007). Social network sites: Definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication,13(1). Buhalis, D. (2003). eTourism: information technology for strategic tourism management. Pearson: Essex, UK. Buhalis, D., &Law, R. (2008). Progress in tourism management: Twenty years on and 10 years after the internet: The state of etourism research. Tourism Management, Vol. 29, (4), pp.609–623 Bulankulama, S.W.G.K., Khatibi, A., &Herath, H.M.T.N.R. (2014). Utilization of social media in an organization and competitive advantages: development of a conceptual framework. International Journal of Economics, Commerce and Management, Vol,2(3) Buted, D. R., Gillespie, N. S., Conti, J. B., Delgado, B. A., Marasigan, R. M. P., Rubico, S. K. A., &Felicen, S. S. (2014). Effects of social media in the tourism industry of Batangas Province. Asia Pacific Journal of Multidisciplinary Research| Vol, 2(3). Caldeira, M. M., & Ward, J. M. (2003).Using resource-based theory to interpret the successful adoption and use of information systems and technology in manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises.European Journal of Information Systems, 12(2), 127-141 Carpenter, A., & Greene, K. (2016).Social Penetration Theory. Celma, Ò. (2010). The Long Tail in Recommender Systems. In Music Recommendation and Discovery (pp. 87-107). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Center for E-Commerce Infrastructure Development (CECID) (2007).From web 1.0 to web 2.0.http://documentengineeringservices.com/publications/FromWeb1toWeb2.pdf Chang, C. L., Khamkaew, T., &McAleer, M. (2009).A panel threshold model of tourism specialization and economic development.International Journal of Intelligent Technologies and Applied Statistics Vol.3,(2) (2010) pp.159 -186. Chien, W. T., Bai, Q., Wong, W. K., Wang, H., & Lu, X. (2013). Nurses‘ perceived barriers to and facilitators of research utilization in Mainland China: A Cross-sectional survey. The open nursing journal, 7(3) 96. Christensen, L. E., Grääs, N., &Haglund, C. L. (2001).Marknadsundersökning– enhandbok. Studentlitteratur, Lund. Christie, I., Fernandes, E., Messerli, H., & Twining-Ward, L. (Eds.). (2014). Tourism in Africa: Harnessing tourism for growth and improved livelihoods. World Bank Publications. Cobbinah, J.R. (2003). Enhancing strategic competitiveness in information and communication technology (ICT) Ghana Country Paper.Telematics and Informatics, 20 (3), p.1–9. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 90 Collis, J & Hussey, R. (2003).Business Research.2nd Ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Cooper, D. R, & Schindler, P. S. (2001). Business Research Methods (7th Ed) McGraw-Hill Irwin, New York, NY. Cox, C., Burgess, S., Sellitto, C., &Buultjens, J. (2009).The role of user-generated content in tourists' travel planning behavior. Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 18(8), 743-764. Cox, S. (2012). Social media marketing in a small business: A case study.(Thesis, Purdue University) Creswell, J. W. (2008). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Methods Approaches. 3rd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Cristea, A. I., Ghali, F., & Joy, M. (2011). Social, personalized lifelong learning.E- infrastructures and technologies for lifelong learning: Next generation environments, 16 (3) 90-125. Dabner, N. (2012). ‗Breaking ground‘ in the use of social media: A case study of a university earthquake response to inform educational design with Facebook. The Internet and Higher Education, 15(1), 69–78. Davenport, T., Hammer, M. &Metsisto, T. (1989). How executives can shape their companies' information systems. Harvard Business Review, 67(5), 130-134 De Vos, A.S. (2003). Research at grassroots: a printer for the caring profession. Pretoria: Van Schaik. Delone, W. H., & McLean, E. R. (2003). The DeLone and McLean model of information systems success: a ten-year update. Journal of management information systems, 19(4), 9-30. Dolak, D. (2008). Building a strong brand: brands and branding basics. Duke, J. C., Hansen, H., Kim, A. E., Curry, L., & Allen, J. (2014). The use of social media by state tobacco control programs to promote smoking cessation: a cross-sectional study. Journal of medical Internet research, 16(7). Eckler, P., Worsowicz, G., & Rayburn, J.W. (2010). Social media and health care: An overview. PM & R: The journal of injury, function, and rehabilitation, 2(11), 1046– 1050. Effere P. (2005). Management styles. London: A paper written for Trans-Atlantic College. Eseonu, C., &Egbue, O. (2014). Socio-cultural influences on technology adoption and sustainable development. Proceedings of the 2014 Industrial and Systems Engineering Research Conference. Euromonitor (2014).Travel and tourism in Ghana.http://www.euromonitor.com/travel-and- tourism-in-ghana/report University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 91 Evans, A., Twomey, J., &Talan, S. (2011). Twitter as a public relations tool. Public Relations Journal, 5(1), 1-20. Evans, D. (2008). Social media marketing an hour a day. Indianapolis, Ind.: Wiley. Evans, D. & McKee J. (2008).Social media marketing.The next generation of business engagement. Wiley: Indianapolis, Indiana. Facebook (2012).Statistics. Retrieved 8th March, 2015 from http://facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics Fatima, E. (2015). Tourism development in Ghana: Towards poverty reduction for sustainable development. A case of Abrafo community. Finin, T., Joshi, A., Kolari, P., Java, A., Kale, A., &Karandikar, A. (2008).The information ecology of social media and online communities.AI Magazine, 29(3), 77–92 Fischer, E., &Reuber, A.R. (2011). Social interaction via new social media: (How) can interactions on Twitter affect effectual thinking and behavior? Journal of Business Venturing, 26(1), 1–18. Fisher, B., Kulindwa, K., Mwanyoka, I., Turner, R. K, & Burgess, N. D. (2010). Common pool resource management and PES: lessons and constraints for water PES in Tanzania. Ecological Economics, 69(6), 1253-1261. Fotis, J., Buhalis, D., &Rossides, N. (2011). Social media impact on holiday travel planning: The case of the Russian and the FSU markets. International Journal of Online Marketing, 1(4), 1–19. Fox, S., Zickuhr, K., & Smith, A. (2009).Twitter and status updating, fall 2009.Pew internet and American life project.Retrieved from: http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/17- Twitter-and-Status-Updating-Fall-2009.aspx. Freedman, D. A. (2005).Bootstrapping regression models. The Annals of Statistics, 9(6), 1218- 1228. Frempong, G.K. (2005). Towards an African e-index household and individual ICT access across 10 African countries.Chapter 6: Ghana. Frempong, G.K. &Atubra, W.H. (2001). Liberalisation of TELECOMS: the Ghanaian experience. Telecommunication Policy, 25,(2), 197–210. Fridolf, M., &Arnautovic, A. (2011).Social Media Marketing: A case study of Saab Automobile AB. (Master‘s Thesis, University West, Trollhattan). Frost, J. (2013). Regression Analysis: How Do I Interpret R-squared and Assess the Goodness-of-Fit. Retrieved May, 30, 2015. Gaudin, S. (2010). Facebook slapped with class-action privacy lawsuit.ComputerWorld, July. Gatignon, H., & Robertson, T. S. (1989). Technology diffusion: an empirical test of competitive effects. The Journal of Marketing, 7(3) 35-49. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 92 Gerard, J. G. (2011). Linking in with linkedIn®: Three exercises that enhance professional social networking and career building. Journal of Management Education, 10 (5) 2562-9114. Ghana Government.(2003). The Ghana ICT for accelerated development (ICT4AD) Policy.Accra, graphic communications group, p. 54. Ghana Hotel Association (2000).http://ghanahotelsassociation.com/files/51220c15e8766.pdf (Accessed: 25/03/2015) Ghana Tourism Authority (2009).List of licensed accommodation in Ghana.Archive. Ghana Tourism Authority (2011).http://www.ghana.travel/services/gtagoogleproject/ (Accessed: 28/03/2015) Ghana Tourism Federation.(2007). National Tourism Development. Accra: State Publishing Corporation Ghana Tourist Board (1999) Tourism statistical fact sheet on Ghana, Accra, Ghana: Ghana tourism board, research department. Ghana Tourist Board (2008). Tourism statistical fact sheet on Ghana, Accra, Ghana: Ghana tourism board, research department. Ghanaweb.com http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/republic/ministry.profile.php?ID=33 (Accessed: 30/03/205) Gilmore, J. H., & Pine, B. J. (1996). The four faces of mass customization. Harvard business review, 75(1), 91-101. Greenberg, P. (2010), ―Introduction,” in the Art of Social Sales, Oracle. Gretzel, U. &Fesenmaier, D.R. (2009). Information technology: Shaping the past, present and the future of tourism. In: Jamal, T.; Robinson, M. (eds.) The Sage Handbook of Tourism Studies. London. pp. 558-580. Gretzel, U.; &Yoo, K.H. (2007). Online travel review study. Role and impact of online travel reviews. Greysen, S. R., Kind, T., & Chretien, K. C. (2010).Online professionalism and the mirror of social media. Journal of general internal medicine, 25(11), 1227-1229. Guielford, J.P. (1965). Fundamental satatistics in pshchology and education. New York: McGraw-Hill. Hair, J.F. Jr., Anderson, R.E., Tatham, R.L.& Black, W.C. (1998).Multivariate data analysis, (5th Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Hanna, R., Rohm, A., & Crittenden, V. L. (2011). We‘re all connected: The power of the social media ecosystem. Business horizons, 54(3), 265-273. Hartzell, D. (2006).Dictionary of management. New Delhi: Academic Publishers. Harwell, E. (2011). Forests in fragile and conflict-affected states. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 93 Hawkins, J., Bulmer, S., & Eagle, L. (2011).Evidence of IMC in social marketing. Journal of Social Marketing, 1(3), 228-239. Herbig, P. &Dunphy, S. (1998). Culture and innovation. Cross cultural management: An International Journal, 12 (2), 14-36 Hinson, R. E., &Boateng, R. (2007).Perceived benefits and management commitment to e- business usage in selected Ghanaian tourism firms.The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, 31. Hinson, R., &Amidu, M. (2006).Internet adoption amongst final year students in Ghana's oldest business school. Library Review, 55(5), 314-323. Hoffman, A. (2009). Re: Social media bridges consumer-producer gap [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.fb.org/index.php?fuseaction=newsroom.focusfocus&year=2009&fi le=fo0720.html Hofstede, D.G. (2001). Culture’s consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions and organizations across nations. 2nd edn. Sage Publications, Inc. Howard, P.N., & Parks, M.R. (2012). Social media and political change: capacity, constraint, and consequence. Journal of Communication, 62(2), 359–362. Hu, X., Tang, J., & Liu, H. (2014, June).Online social spammer detection.InTwenty-Eighth AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence. International Development Corporation (2012). Tourism report: The business hotel industry in select east and west African countries. Retrieved from: http://www.wikitourism.co.za/images/3/31/IDC_Tourism_and_Hospitality_Review_20 12.pdf International Telecommunication Union (2011).ICT facts and figures. Retrieved from: https://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/facts/2011/material/ICTFactsFigures2011.pdf Israel, S. (2009) Twitterville: how businesses can thrive in the new globalneighborhoods, New York, NY: Penguin Group Inc. Jan, M. T., Abdullah, K., &Momen, A. (2015). Factors influencing the adoption of social networking sites: Malaysian Muslim user‘s perspective. Johnston, K., Chen, M. M., &Hauman, M. (2013).Changes in use, perception and attitude of first year students towards facebook and twitter. In Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on IS Management and Evaluation: ICIME 2013 (p. 135). Kalbach, J. (2008). Navigating the long tail.Bulletin of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 34(2), 36-38. KamelBoulos, M. N., & Wheeler, S. (2007). The emerging Web 2.0 social software: an enabling suite of sociable technologies in health and health care education1. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 24(1), 2-23. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 94 Kanter, R. M. (2015). From spare change to real change: The social sector as beta site for business innovation. Havard Business Review. Kaplan, A. M. &Haenlein, M. (2009). The fairyland of second life: Virtual social worlds and how to use them. Business Horizons, 52(6), 563–572. Kaplan, A. M., &Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media.Business horizons, 53(1), 59-68. Kaplan, A. M., &Haenlein, M. (2011). The early bird catches the news: Nine things you should know about micro-blogging. Business Horizons, 54(2), 105-113. Kavanagh, M. J., &Thite, M. (2009). Human resource information systems: Basics, applications, and future directions. Sage. Kavanaugh, A., Yang, S., Sheetz, S., Li, L. T., & Fox, E. (2011).Microblogging in crisis situations: Mass protests in Iran, Tunisia, Egypt.In ACM.CHI. Kelly, L. (2008). Teenagers' perceptions of advertising in the online social networking environment: an exploratory study. (Thesis, Queensland University of Technology). Kerr, S., & Newell, R. G. (2003). Policy-induced technology adoption: evidence from the US lead phasedown. Journal of Industrial Economics, 51(3), 317-343. Kiatrungrit, K., &Hongsanguansri, S. (2014). Cross-sectional study of use of electronic media by secondary school students in Bangkok, Thailand.Shanghai archives of psychiatry, 26(4), 216. Kietzmann, J.H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I.P., & Silvestre, B.S. (2011).Social media? Get serious! understanding the functional building blocks of social media. Business Horizons, 54(3), 241–251. Kim, J., &Tussyadiah, I. P. (2013). Social networking and social support in tourism experience: The moderating role of online self-presentation strategies.Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1-2), 78-92. Kimberly, J.R., &Evanisko, M.J. (1981). Organizational innovation: the influence of individual, organizational, and contextual factors on hospital adoption of technological and administrative innovations. Academy of Management Journal,24, (4), 689-713. Komito, L., & Bates, J. (2009). Virtually local: social media and community among polish nationals in Dublin. Aslib Proceedings, 61(3), 232–244. Kumar, R. (2005). Research methodology: A step-by step guide for beginnersFourth Edition. SAGE Publications Ltd. Kumar, S., &Phrommathed, P. (2005). Research methodology.Springer US. Leedy, P. D., &Ormrod, J. E. (2005).Practical research: Planning and design (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Lekhanya, L. M. (2013). Cultural influence on the diffusion and adoption of social media technologies by entrepreneurs in rural South Africa. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 95 Leue, M. C., Jung, T., & Knowles, T. (2013) Social Media Marketing in Selected UK Luxury Hotels. Leung, D., Law, R., van Hoof, H., &Buhalis, D. (2013). Social media in tourism and hospitality: A literature review. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1-2), 3-22. Leung, X. Y., &Bai, B. (2013). How motivation, opportunity, and ability impact travelers' social media involvement and revisit intention. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1-2), 58-77. Leuthard, T. (2014) Explore Flickr. Retrieved from http://thomas.leuthard.photography/wp- content/uploads/2014/02/ExploreFlickr.pdf Lew, A. A. (2008). Long tail tourism: New geographies for marketing niche tourism products. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 25(3-4), 409-419. Lewis, R. (2010). Marketing Muslim lifestyle: A new media genre. Journal of Middle East Women's Studies, 6(3), 58-90. Likert, R. (1967). The Human Organization. New York: McGraw – Hill Inc. Lovejoy, K., & Saxton, G. D. (2012). Information, community, and action: how nonprofit organizations use social media. Journal of Computer‐Mediated Communication, 17(3), 337-353. Mabry, E. F. (2010). Engaging audiences: an analysis of social media usage in advertising (Doctoral dissertation, Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Mass Communication in The Manship School of Mass Communication by Emily Fay Mabry BS, Louisiana State University). Mack, N., Woodsong, C., MacQueen, K. M., Guest, G., &Namey, E. (2005). Qualitative research methods: a data collector‘s field guide. Mahmood, A. (2012). Social Media‘s Influence on Hospitality & Tourism Management.Journal of Business & Hotel Management.4(3) 12-32 Malhotra, N. K., & Dash, S. (Ed.). (2011). Marketing research: an applied orientation. New Delhi: Pearson Pub. Malhotra, N.K., & Birks, D.F. (2007).“Marketing research: an applied approach”, 3rd Ed. Prentice Hall, Inc Mangold, W.,&Faulds, D.(2009). Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix. Business Horizons52(4), 357-365. Marlow, C., Naaman, M., Boyd, D., & Davis, M. (2006).Position paper, tagging, taxonomy, flickr, article, toread. In Collaborative Web Tagging Workshop at WWW’06. Masterson, M., &Tribby, M. (2008). Changing the Channel: 12 Easy Ways to Make Millions for Your Business (Vol. 14).John Wiley & Sons. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 96 Mayfield, A. (2008). What is social media? London: iCrossing. McGowan, B.S., Wasko, M., Vartabedian, B.S., Miller, R.S., Freiherr, D.D., &Abdolrasulnia, M. (2012).Understanding the factors that influence the adoption and meaningful use of social media by physicians to share medical information.Journal of Medical Internet Research, 14(5) McGuire, K. A. (2011) Do Guest Reviews Really Matter? Linking Social Media and Operations Data. McLoughlin, C., & Lee, M. J. (2010). Personalised and self-regulated learning in the Web 2.0 era: International exemplars of innovative pedagogy using social software. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 26(1). Mensah, I. (2009). Management of tourism and hospitality services. Accra: Woeli Publishing Services. Mhango, Y. (2010). Economics Ghana: Annual economic outlook. The eve of oil production. Micek, D., &Waren, W. (2008). Twitter revolution. How social media and mobile marketing is changing the way we do business and market online. Las Vegas: Xeno Press. Mihalic, T., &Buhalis, D. (2013).ICT as a new competitive advantage factor–case of small transitional hotel sector.Economic and Business Review, 15(1), 33-56. Miko, B. M. (2011). Advanced internet applications on desktop.http://is.muni.cz/th/173355/fi_m/thesis_cbrpcjgz.pdf Mills, A., Chen, R., Lee, J., &RaghavRao, H. (2009). Web 2.0 emergency applications: How useful can Twitter be for emergency response? Journal of Information Privacy and Security, 5(3), 3-26. Milović, B. (2012). Social media and eCRM as a prerequisite for hotel success.Management, 7(3), 026-031. Minzberg, H. (1973) ‗Strategies Making in Three Modes‘, California Management Review, 3 (16). Murphy, H.; Centeno Gil E. A.;&Schegg, R. (2010).An investigation of motivations to share online content by young travelers – why and where. In: Myjoyonline (2013).Mobile penetration cross 100% in Ghana http://business.myjoyonline.com/pages/news/201302/100891.php Naaman, M. (2010). Social multimedia: Highlighting opportunities for search and mining of multimedia data in social media applications. Multimedia Tools and Applications, 56(1), 9–34. Narteh, B., Agbemabiese, G. C., Kodua, P., &Braimah, M. (2013). Relationship marketing and customer loyalty: Evidence from the Ghanaian luxury hotel industry. Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 22(4), 407-436. National Communications Authority (2006).Industry statistics: sector overview. Available at http://www.nca.org.gh. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 97 National Communications Authority (2012).Industry statistics: sector overview. Available at http://www.nca.org.gh. National Communications Authority (2013).Industry statistics: sector overview. Available at http://www.nca.org.gh. Neupane, R.P. &Thapa, G.B. (2001).Impact of agroforestry intervention on soil fertility and farm income under the subsistence farming system of the middle hills, Nepal.Ag- riculture, Ecosystems and Environment 84(3), 157-167. Neupane, R.P., Shaarma, K.R&Thapa, G.B. (2002). Adoption of agroforestry in the hills of Nepal: a logistic regression analysis. Agricultural Systems 72(2), 177-196. Nguyen, T.U.H.(2009). Information technology adoption in SMEs: An integrated framework. Int. J.Entrep. Behav. Res., 15(3), 162–186. Nunnally, J.C. (1978). Psychometric theory (2nded.). New York: McGraw-Hill. O‘Connor, P. (2011). Social media adoption by international hotel companies: A benchmark and exploration of best practices. Conference on social media in hospitality and tourism, Oct. 21-22, 2011, in Verona, Italy. O'Connor, P. (1999). Electronic Information Distribution in Tourism and Hospitality.CABI: Oxford. O‘Reilly, T. (2005).Web 2.0: compact definition. Retrieved from: http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2005/10/web_20_compact_definition.html. O‘Reilly, T., & Musser, J. (2006). Web 2.0 principles and best practices. Retrieved March, 2015 http://entreprisedigitale.typepad.com/main/files/web20_report_excerpt.pdf Olsen, M. D., & Connolly, D. J. (2000). Experience-based travel: How technology is changing the hospitality industry. The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 41(1), 30-40. Palinkas, L. A., Horwitz, S. M., Green, C. A., Wisdom, J. P., Duan, N., &Hoagwood, K. (2013). Purposeful sampling for qualitative data collection and analysis in mixed method implementation research. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 4 (2) 1-12. Pan, B., Crotts, J. C., &Sigala, M. (2012). Theoretical models of social media, marketing implications, and future research directions. Social Media in Travel, Tourism and Hospitality, 73-83. Pallant, J. (2010). SPSS Survival manual. A step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS 4th edition. Patel, K. (2013). Incremental Journey for World Wide Web: Introduced with Web 1.0 to Recent Web 5.0–A Survey Paper. International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer Science and Software Engineering, 3(10), 410-417. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 98 Patton, M.Q. (1990) Qualitative Evaluation and Research Methods. Newbury Park; London: SAGE Pearson, M. (2013). Social Media Can Play a Role in Business Process Management. Harvard Business Review. Pew Internet (2015).Social networking web sites and teens: an overview. Retrieved from www.interdys.org/webeditpro5/uplodRaskind_Social_Networking_P25.pdf Ploof, R. (2009). Johnson & Johnson does new media.New Media Innovator. Poalses, J., &Joubert, J. P. R. (2014).Advertising in the eye of the time-constrained beholder. The Retail and Marketing Review, 10(1), 1-16. Premkumar, G. & Roberts, M.(1999), Adoption of new information technologies in rural small businesses. Omega, 27(3) 467–484. Pugh, J. L. (2010). A qualitative study of the facebook social network: The desire to influence, associate, and construct a representative and ideal identity. (Thesis, California State University, Long Beach, CA 90840). Quang, T. (2002).‗Conflict management in joint ventures‘, Transitions, 38 (122). Rheingold, H. (2010). Attention and other 21st-century social media literacies. Educause Review, 45(5), 14–24. Riemer, K. & Richter, A. (2010). Tweet Inside: Microblogging in a Corporate Context. In Proceedings of the 23rd Bled eConference, 1-17, Bled, Slovenia. Rizzoni, A. (1991). Technological innovation and small firms: a taxonomy. International Small Business Journal, 9, (3), 31-42. Rogers, E.M. (2003). Diffusion of innovations. New York: Free Press. Rollett, H., Lux, M., Strohmaier, M., &Dosinger, G. (2007).The Web 2.0 way of learning with technologies.International Journal of Learning Technology, 3(1), 87-107. Rothwell, R. (1977). The characteristics of successful innovators and technically progressive firms.R&D Management, 7, (3), 191-206. Santarelli, E., &Sterlacchini, A. (1990). Innovation, formal vs. informal R&D, and firm size: some evidence from Italian manufacturing firms. Small Business Economics, 2(3), 223-228. Saunders, M., Lewis, P. &Thornhill, A. (2000) Research methods for business students.2nd edition. Harlow: Pearson Education. Schlagwein, D., &Prasarnphanich, P. (2014).Social Media around the GLOBE. Journal of Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce. Schroeder, A., Pennington-Gray, L., Donohoe, H., &Kiousis, S. (2013). Using social media in times of crisis. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1-2), 126-143. Scott, D. M. (2010).The new rules of marketing and PR: how to use social media, blogs, news releases, online video, & viral marketing to reach buyers directly (2nd ed.). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 99 Selwyn, N. (2007). Web 2.0 applications as alternative environments for informal learning-a critical review. In Paper for CERI-KERIS International Expert Meeting on ICT and Educational Performance (pp. 16-17). Senders, A., Govers, R., &Neuts, B. (2013).Social Media Affecting Tour Operators' Customer Loyalty. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1-2), 41-57. Seth, G. (2012). Analyzing the effects of social media on the hospitality industry. Retrieved from http://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2338&context=thesesdis sertations Siaw, P.L., &Ansah, O.G. (2015). Tourist destination choice: motivational factors among social science students‘ associations at KNUST. Researchjournali’s Journal of Hospitality Tourism Vol. 2(1) 12-46 Siersdorfer, S., Chelaru, S., Nejdl, W., & San Pedro, J. (2010, April). How useful are your comments?:analyzing and predicting youtube comments and comment ratings. In Proceedings of the 19th international conference on World Wide Web (pp. 891- 900).ACM. Sirakaya, E., Teye, V., &Sonmez, S. (2002).Understanding residents‘ support for tourism development in the central region of Ghana.Journal of travel research, 41(1), 57-67. Sommerfeldt, E. J., & Taylor, M. (2011). A social capital approach to improving public relations efficacy: Diagnosing internal constraints on external communication. Public Relations Review, 37 (3), 197-206. Sotiriadis, M. D., & van Zyl, C. (2013). Electronic word-of-mouth and online reviews in tourism services: the use of twitter by tourists. Electronic Commerce Research, 13(1), 103-124. Stern, J. (2002). Introduction of Web 2.0 technologies. New York: Free Press Stone, T. (2009). Blending web 2.0 technologies with traditional formal learning: a guide for clos and training managers. Retrieve 18/03/15 www.trainingindustry.com/media/3284852/element%20k%20- %20blending%20web%2020%20technologies%20with%20traditional%20formal%20l earning.pdf Sui, D., &Goodchild, M. (2011). The convergence of GIS and social media: Challenges for GIScience. International Journal of Geographical Information Science, 25(11), 1737– 1748. Sullivan, J. (2013). The Effects of Social Media in the Hotel Sector: A report for WinHotels. Bachelor‘s Thesis: Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. Sweetser, K.D. (2010). A losing strategy: The impact of nondisclosure in social media on relationships. Journal of Public Relations Research, 22(3), 288–312. Tang, L., & Liu, H. (2011).Leveraging social media networks for classification.Data Mining and Knowledge Discovery, 23(3), 447–478. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 100 Teixeira, T. S. (2014). The rising cost of consumer attention: why you should care, and what you can do about it. Teye, V. B. (2000). Tourism development experience in Ghana.DPMN Bulletin, 7(1), 8-12. Tham, A., Croy, G., &Mair, J. (2013). Social media in destination choice: Distinctive electronic word-of-mouth dimensions. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1- 2), 144-155 Thew, D. (2008).LinkedIn—a user's perspective Using new channels for effective business networking. Business information review, 25(2), 87-90. Thuy, P. N., &Hau, L. N. (2010). Service personal values and customer loyalty: A study of banking services in a transitional economy. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 28(6), 465–478. Tredinnick, L. (2006). ‗Web 2.0 and Business: A Pointer to the Intranets of the Future‘, BusinessInformation Review 23(4): 228–34. Tschirch, V. (2009).Web 2.0 and its implications for business: with case studies from Germany and New Zealand (Doctoral dissertation, Auckland University of Technology). Tyner, K. (2014). Literacy in a digital world: Teaching and learning in the age of information. Routledge. Ullrich, C., Borau, K., Luo, H., Tan, X., Shen, L., &Shen, R. (2008). Why web 2.0 is good for learning and for research: principles and prototypes. InProceedings of the 17th international conference on World Wide Web (pp. 705-714).ACM. UNWTO (2009).UNWTO tourism highlights presents a concise overview of international tourism in the world based on the results for the year 2009. http://www.tugberkugurlu.com/tags/unwto (Accessed: 16th January, 2015). UNWTO (2010).UNWTO annual report 2010.http://www2.unwto.org/publication/unwto- annual-report-2010 (Accessed: 10/01/2015). UNWTO (2011).UNWTO annual report 2011.http://www2.unwto.org/publication/unwto- annual-report-2011 (Accessedd: 10/01/2015). UNWTO (2012).UNWTO annual report 2012.http://www2.unwto.org/publication/unwto- annual-report-2012 (Accessed: 10/01/2015). UNWTO (2013).UNWTO annual report 2013.http://www2.unwto.org/publication/unwto- annual-report-2013 (Accessed: 10/01/2015). Van Alstyne, M., &Brynjolfsson, E. (2005). Electronic Communities: Global Village or Cyberbalkans? Management Science 51(6), 851-868 Varga, T. (2009).Language of YouTube Video Comments. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 101 Vidovic, A. (2012). Exploiting the Opportunities Arising Out of Social Media-A Case Study of Hotels in Vienna. Bachelor thesis in Tourism and Hospitality Management, Modul University, Vienna.Retrieved January, 19, 2014. Wall Street Journal (2012, October 4) Facebook: One billion and counting. Retrieved from http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10000872396390443635404578036164027386112 Weinberg, T. (2009).The new community rules: Marketing on the social web. Sebastopol, CA: O‘Reilly Media, Inc. Wellenius, B. (1997). Telecommunications: World Bank experiences and strategies. World Bank Discussion Paper No. 192. West, R. & Turner, L.H. (2008).Understanding Interpersonal Communication: Making Choices in Changing Times. 2nd Ed., Wadsworth: Boston, US. Withiam, G. (2010). Making effective use of social media. Social media and the hospitality industry: Holding the Tiger by the Tail. Cornell Hospitality Research Summit Proceedings, 3(3) March 2010. Woletz, J. D. (2008). Digital Storytelling from Artificial Intelligence to YouTube.Handbook of Research on Computer Mediated Communication, 2(3), 587-601. WTO (1999). Tourism Marketing Trends : Africa 1989-1998, Madid : WTO Commission for Africa. WTTC (2012).The economic impact of travel & tourism 2012.http://www.viewsontourism.info/2012/wttc-economic-impact-research-2012/ WTTC (2014).The economic impact of travel & tourism 2014.http://www.wttc.org/- /media/files/reports/economic%20impact%20research/regional%20reports/world2014. pdf Yang, K. H., Lee, S. M., & Lee, S. G. (2007). Adoption of information and communication technology: impact of technology types, organization resources and management style. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 107(9), 1257-1275. Yates, D., & Paquette, S. (2011). Emergency knowledge management and social media technologies: A case study of the 2010 Haitian earthquake. International Journal of Information Management, 31(1), 6–13. Yazdanifard, R., Obeidy, W. K., Yusoff, W. F. W., &Babaei, H. R. (2011).Social Networks and Microblogging; The Emerging Marketing Trends &Tools of the Twenty-first Century.In The Proceedings of 2011 International Conference on Computer Communication and Management (Vol. 5, pp. 577-581). Yesilada, Y., R. Stevens, C. Goble, &Hussein, S. (2004).Rendering tables in audio: The interaction of structure and reading styles. inASSETS'04. 2004. Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Zeng, D., Chen, H., Lusch, R., & Li, S. (2010). Social media analytics and intelligence.IEEE Intelligent Systems, 25(6), 13–16. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 102 Zhen, L., Zoebisch, M.A., Chen, G., &Feng, Z. (2006). Sustainability of farmers‘ soil fertility management practices: A case study in the North China Plain. Journal of Environ- mental Management 79(6), 409-419. Zhou, Z. (2004). E-commerce and information technology in hospitality and tourism.1st Edition. Thomson Delmar Learning: New York. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 103 Appendix 1: Questionnaire UNIVERSITY OF GHANA BUSINESS SCHOOL DEPARTMENT OF MARKETING AND CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON This study is being conducted by an M.Phil. Marketing Student of the University of Ghana Business School on the topic ―Factors influencing social media utilization as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry‖ from the Department of Marketing and Customer Management. I humbly request you to fill the questionnaire below by ticking the most suitable option that applies to you. Please be informed that all the information that would be obtained through this questionnaire administration is purely for academic purposes only and a study to expand the borders of knowledge in the field and that, respondents are assured of uttermost confidentiality of information provided. SD = STRONGLY DISAGREE D = DISAGREE N = NEUTRAL A = AGREE SA =STRONGLY AGREEVL =VERY LOW L = LOW N= NEUTRAL H = HIGH VH =VERY HIGH No. Questions SD 1 D 2 N 3 A 4 SA 5 Factors influencing social media utilization as a marketing communication tool in the hotel industry Cultural factors 1 Religion can influence social media utilization 2 Language can influence social media utilization 3 Level of education influence social media utilization 4 Peer influence can influence SMU Cost factors 5 Internet charges can influence social media utilization 6 Quality of internet services can influence SMU 7 Income levels can influence SMU 8 Pre-pay systems can influence SMU Competition 9 Market liberalization can influence SMU 10 Growth of mobile network can influence SMU 11 Quality of internet services can influence SMU 12 Charges from internet service providers can influence SMU Managerial Style 13 CEO‘s attitude towards IT can influence SMU 14 CEO‘s interest in ICT can influence SMU 15 CEO‘s Age can influence SMU 16 Management support can influence SMU Human resource 17 Knowledge of staff can influence SMU 18 ICT skills of staff can influence SMU 19 Staff training on social media can influence SMU 20 Excellent delivery of services IT infrastructure University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 104 21 Growth of ICT infrastructure 22 Availability of internet facility can influence SMU 23 Customers usage of internet can influence SMU 24 Customers adoption of smartphone and tablets can influence SMU General level of social media adoption in the hotel industry VL 1 L 2 N 3 H 4 VH 5 25 Extent of use of social media as a communication tool in the Ghanaian hotel industry. 26 What is the presence of hotels on social media 27 The level of utilization of social media in the hotel industry. 28. What is the level of engagement on social media The most frequently used social media network mostly use for social media campaign VL 1 L 2 N 3 H 4 VH 5 29. Facebook 30. Twitter 31. YouTube 32. Flickr 33. LinkedIn Rank the following outcomes of social media utilization VL 1 L 2 N 3 H 4 VH 5 34. Obtaining feedback 35. Low cost of operation/ cost effectiveness 36. Reaching global audience 37. Positive electronic word-of-mouth 38. Increasing visibility 39. Brand building 40. Enhancing customer satisfaction 41. Real-time information/ speed of feedback 42. Disseminating information faster 43. Spread of false information 44. Spammers 45. Exposing trade secrets 46. Negative comments/ undue criticisms 47. Damaging companies reputation 48. Gender: A. Male [ ] B. Female [ ] 49. Which Age Group do you belong? A. 18-30 [ ] B. 30-4 [] C. 45+ [ ] 50. Highest academic qualification A. HND [ ] B. Degree [ ] C. Postgraduate [ ] D. Doctorate [ ] 51. Kindly, indicate your profession A. IT Manager [ ] B. Marketing manager [ ] C. HR Manager [ ] D. Accounts Manager [ ] E. Procurement manager [ ] F. Others (specify)…………………………. 52. Nationality: A. Ghanaian [ ] B. Others Specify ………………………………… Thank You Very Much University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh