Sheraton survey reveals social media habits

WHITE PLAINS, NY—Sheraton Hotels & Resorts has released a new survey conducted by STUDYLOGIC, revealing that more than 60 percent of respondents in the global study use social media, rather than the telephone, to stay in touch with friends and family while traveling.

Overall, survey respondents ranked social media somewhere near air and water as a must-have in their lives. Four-fifths of respondents said they access social networking sites throughout the day, while 39 percent said they “could not live without” social media sites. One-third of respondents said they log in multiple times each hour while one fifth of respondents say that they check social networking sites multiple times throughout the day while traveling.

The global study surveyed 4,204 people via phone in the U.S., U.K. and China following Sheraton's recently rolled-out “Link@Sheraton experienced with Microsoft” – a technology-driven social hub that keeps travelers connected 24/7 at nearly 400 hotels around the world.

Social Networking Blurs Lines between Business, Pleasure

Before meeting a new business contact, more than half of those surveyed check out their new contact’s social networking profiles (54 percent) and nearly 60 percent say they have not hired a candidate based on a negative impression from a social-media profile. In addition, more than half (54 percent) of respondents say they know someone who has been fired for something said or posted online.

Regardless of pitfalls, social networking’s popularity as a networking tool continues to grow. More than half of all respondents (56 percent) agreed about the importance of doing business with people active in social media channels and 55 percent use online social networking to meet new business contacts and maintain current ones.

Social media has also begun to mix business and pleasure – literally. More than half of those surveyed have arranged a romantic interlude on the road using social networks, with men more likely to do so (45 percent) than women (40 percent).

Fact or Fiction?

Don’t always believe what you read. Nearly 70 percent of respondents say they aren’t honest on social networking sites; 27 percent of those fib “a little,” 21 percent flat-out “lie,” and 20 percent admit that their postings are total fabrications. Women are more inclined to tell little white lies online; men were more likely to be 100 percent honest (46 percent) versus their female counterparts (18 percent).

Who Are People Visiting While on the Road?
 
More than 50 percent of all Sheraton guests use the Link@Sheraton during their stay. Facebook is the most visited site at the Link@Sheraton, with 75 percent of Link users logging in during their stay. 62 percent of those surveyed find that social media makes it easier for them to meet people while traveling for work.

Social Media as a Travel Planning Tool:

64 percent said they use social media to make their travel plans and within the 25-34 year old participant group, the number is even higher; 76 percent look to popular social media sites to plan their next getaway.

”Along with the bigger shift toward social media from other forms of communication, what the survey drove home for us was that an experience like Link@Sheraton isn’t a luxury for guests, but a necessity,” said Hoyt Harper, SVP and Global Brand Leader for Sheraton Hotels & Resorts. “They expect total connectivity.”

The Link@Sheraton experienced with Microsoft is a signature component of the Sheraton brand’s $6 billion global effort to enhance the brand and differentiate the guest experience at properties worldwide. The Link@Sheraton invites guests to interact with each other while they check their email, research local attractions and even print boarding passes using free Wi-Fi and Internet-enabled computer stations.