Boost Hospitality Management through Social Media: Applications in Higher Education

Hospitality industry, often referred to as a "people industry", constitutes a fiercely competitive and leading industry of the global economy, which relies heavily on its employees to deliver high-quality services and keep customers satisfied. In this sense of global context, hospitality management skills are acknowledged as a crucial element of business success, in the attempt to provide outstanding experiences and differentiate from competitors. On the other hand, the ever changing evolution and the continuous emergence of new technologies, transform not only the customer demands but the daily habits of human population, in general. Social media is already recognized as a powerful marketing tool, embedded in the daily life, particularly for people of young age, who are reported to be strongly influenced by such applications. These young people are frequently students, which consequently resulted in now seriously viewing social media even as a useful tool for various educational procedures and purposes. Its application in hospitality education ranges from limited to wide, including the promotion of hospitality management skills. This paper draws on existing literature aiming to summarize the hospitality management skills that may be promoted through the applications of social media in educational procedures and explore how it may be further employed in this regard.