Is social media positively changing our industry?

Assessing the factors affecting the hospitality industry, I have realised what a colossal part social media has to play in the industry that we love. Although it has its detractors, having a vibrant internet presence can only benefit consumers, customers and managers alike due to the publicity and praise you can gain using the various platforms.

The main reviewing system for any food outlet would be TripAdvisor, however this can be a nemesis to a business. There is however the potential for users to edit their own profiles to make them look staggeringly brilliant; this a damaging problem yet to be solved by TripAdvisor themselves.

All businesses are ranked in your local area. This demonstrates a simple way of getting recognised as many people review their experiences on the website to voice their opinion be it good or bad.

Many establishments tell customers to review their experience as they can improve or consolidate their practises depending on the outcome of the consumer's view. This can downgrade the reputation of any business as negative feedback travels faster than the positive equivalent. Ultimately, it is the managers’ decision to decide how big a role social media plays in their respective business. The good reviews can take time to feed through to the bigger audience but it would be foolish in the current climate not to use it to its full capacity.

Diners can be very scathing in analysing their food if it does not meet their needs. As discussed previously, it will impact custom and overall reputation if there is 1 bad review out of 10. Making sure that the business strategizes effectively without harming their development is essential. Assessing the situation weekly or fortnightly to see if any alterations need to be made is advisable.

After weighing up both sides, I feel it can only be beneficial in making sure the hospitality industry is heading in the right direction. The more publicity this industry gets the better and social media has a vital role to play going forward. Used in the correct way it can only be a good thing surely?