Page 33 - Management 19 (2024), številka 1

Fabrizio Gritta The Use of Social Big Data
European University of Rome, Italy
fabrizio.gritta@unier.it in Small Hospitality Businesses

Social media has transformed the way hospitality businesses interact
with their customers, increasing tourist engagement and co-creation
in travel. By analysing large amounts of data from social media, tour-
ism enterprises can improve their operations and customer experiences
through the use of Big Data and artificial intelligence. This study exam-
ines whether and how small businesses in the Italian hospitality sector
with high online visibility adopt Social Big Data practices. Through a re-
view of existing literature and qualitative interviews with small business-
es, various models of Social Big Data usage have been identified, particu-
larly for enhancing operational and marketing strategies. The findings
indicate that small hospitality businesses extensively use social media,
but the use of Social Big Data is limited due to their small size.
Keywords: Big Data, AI, social media, web 3.0, tourism, small accommo-
dation

Uporaba družbenih velikih podaktov v majhnih gostinskih
podjetjih

Družbena omrežja so spremenila način, kako gostinske dejavnosti komu-
nicirajo s strankami, kar povečuje turistično vključenost in soustvarjanje
potovanj. S pomočjo analize velikih količin podatkov z družbenih omrežij
lahko turistična podjetja z uporabo velikih podatkov in umetne inteli-
gence izboljšajo svoje poslovanje ter izkušnje strank. Pričujoča raziskava
preučuje, ali in kako majhna podjetja v italijanskem gostinskem sektorju
z visoko spletno prepoznavnostjo uvajajo prakse družbenih velikih po-
datkov. Preko pregleda obstoječe literature in kvalitativnih intervjujev z
majhnimi podjetji so bili identificirani različni modeli uporabe družbenih
velikih podatkov, zlasti za izboljšanje operativnih in marketinških stra-
tegij. Ugotovitve kažejo, da majhna gostinska podjetja precej uporabljajo
družbena omrežja, vendar je uporaba družbenih velikih podatkov omeje-
na zaradi njihove majhnosti.
Ključne besede: veliki podatki, umetna inteligenca, družbeni mediji, splet
3.0, turizem, majhne nastanitve
https://doi.org/10.26493/1854-4231.19.33-39

Introduction ses, especially in Italy, might benefit more from
The rise and rapid spread of social media have Social Big Data due to their flexibility and perso-
transformed the manner in which businesses nalised service.
connect with customers, significantly impa- This study examines the extent to which small,
cting the tourism sector. Social media drives the highly visible accommodation facilities adopt So-
commercialisation of tourism products and gene- cial Big Data practices. The research proposes a
rates valuable data for identifying market trends framework for integrating this data into business
and user sentiments. strategies, with the aim of assisting small busi-
The literature highlights the importance of nesses in overcoming barriers and leveraging so-
social media for customer engagement and value cial media data.
creation in hospitality. While large businesses Based on manager interviews and a literature
use social media data for demand forecasting and review, the findings indicate that these facilities
customer satisfaction, small hospitality busines- utilise social media extensively and are aware of

management 19 (2024) številka 1 33