Leveraging Social Media Use for Tourism Promotion and Development in Nigeria

Tourism is a major driver of economic growth and sustainable development in many countries across the globe. In Nigeria, the tourism industry remains underperforming in its output due to dwindling patronage, largely borne from poor or inadequate promotions, of many tourist centres in the country. With the penetration of digital technologies in contemporary marketing ventures, strategic utilisation of social media platforms hold much promise for tourism visibility, promotions and engagement. This paper, therefore, explored how social media use can be leveraged for tourism promotion and development in Nigeria. It was established that many Nigerian tourist centres underutilise the digital marketing opportunities embedded in the social media sphere. The paper discussed how tourism promotions on social media, with increasing prominence of user-generated content, impact tourists’ patronage decisions and their experience-sharing proclivities about tourist destinations. Strategic implications of the social media promotional dynamics for tourism stakeholders in Nigeria were also postulated. It was concluded that social media utilisation can accelerate tourism promotion and development in Nigeria as long as tourist centres in the country pay attention to creating share-worthy experiences and cultivating vibrant engagements with tourists. Keywords: Social Media Use, Tourism Promotion, Tourist Patronage Decision, Tourist Experience Sharing, Nigerian Tourist Centres