Analysis of the Trend in the Number of Followers on Social Networks in Spanish World Heritage Cities: A Comparative Study of Facebook, Instagram and Twitter

Abstract

The presence of tourist destinations on social media has become a fundamental requirement for the success of tourism management. Virtually all tourist destinations have profiles on one or more social networks. However, their presence is not the same on all these social networks, as the existence of a profile and level of activity largely depends on the preferences of destination managers or the marketing strategy chosen by the destination. Using the weekly number of followers on the three main social networks of the 15 Spanish Cities of World Heritage (CEPH), the objective of this study is to delve into the analysis of the annual variation experienced by estimating the most appropriate trend model for the analyzed time series. The results obtained have allowed us to identify the profiles that have grown the most during the year, locate the social network in which this growth has occurred the most, and understand how this growth has occurred throughout the analyzed year. In turn, the trend analysis in time series reveals that, predominantly, the exponential model is the one that best fits the data. This implies that the highest growth rates occur in the middle and late months of the year.