Nature-based tourism is one of the most preferred types of tourism by tourists in recent years. This type of tourism also has a special effect on people's decisions. This paper analyzes the role of nature-based tourism in people's decisions and tourist preferences, as well as how companies meet these requirements. Taking into account the growing tourism potential in the Caucasus region, Azerbaijan has been selected as the main study area. In this paper, the qualitative method was applied as the main research design, and the data collection was obtained based on interviews. This study reveals the expectations of tourists from companies and the factors that influence their decisions. It also analyzes how companies meet the needs of tourists and the relationship between them.

COVID-19 has taken a major toll on the tourism industry. Traveler confidence has decreased as travel restrictions and fears regarding the virus have increased. As tourist destinations rely more on local tourism to survive the current crisis, communicating COVID-19 procedures is vital to mitigate tourist ́s safety concerns. Therefore, the objective of this study was to use content analysis to identify COVID-19 policy initiatives highlighted within tourism company websites and to compare regions to identify differences in website communication content. The study analyzed 100 various tourism company websites throughout Sweden. The findings and the supporting literature indicating that the websites should have information available about booking policy, operation limitations, social distance policy, and customer/staff responsibility to properly communicate their COVID-19 policies. Overall, the tourism company websites in this study were lacking in the communication of COVID-19 policies. To ameliorate communication of COVID-19 procedures, this study offers recommendations for tourism firms to incorporate.

Uppsatsens syfte är att kartlägga hur nio svenska turistföretag ser på sociala mediers och konsumentens roll inom marknadsföring online. Vidare vill uppsatsförfattarna analysera potentiella effekter av virala marknadsföringskampanjer. Detta utifrån fyra teoretiska ramverk: webb 2.0, word-of-mouth, viral marknadsföring samt social valuta. I uppsatsens analys besvaras tre frågeställningar: hur ser turistföretagen på marknadsföring genom sociala medier, vad har konsumenternas sociala nätverk för betydelse i turistföretagens virala marknadsföring, samt vilka är de upplevda effekterna av virala marknadsföringskampanjer? Uppsatsens empiri baseras på data insamlad via nio semistrukturerade intervjuer. De generella resultaten visar på att konsumentens sociala nätverk online har en stor betydelse för företagens marknadsföring online, konsumenterna äger varumärket genom att de i sina sociala kanaler kan sprida både positiv och negativ word-of-mouth till det sociala nätverket. Sociala medier är en viktig faktor i turistföretagens marknadsföring och företagen måste idag vara närvarande på sociala medier då allt fler konsumenter befinner sig online. Studien har även visat att företagen endast upplever positiva effekter av företagens virala marknadsföringskampanjer. Kampanjerna leder till att konsumenterna integreras i marknadsföringen och sprider företagets varumärke till dess sociala nätverk. I och med detta bildas en positiv relation mellan företag och konsument. / The aim of this essay is to identify how nine Swedish tourism companies view the role of social media and the consumer in online marketing. Furthermore, the authors will analyze the potential effects of viral marketing campaigns. This is based on four theoretical frameworks: web 2.0, word-of-mouth, viral marketing and social currency. The analysis answer three questions: how tourism companies looks on marketing through social media, what consumer social networks importance of tourism businesses viral marketing, and what are the perceived effects of viral marketing campaigns? The essays empirics are based on data collected through nine semi-structured interviews. The overall results show that the social networks of consumers have a great significance for the companies’ online marketing. Through their social media channels, consumers can spread both positive and negative word-of-mouth to their social networks, this has the effect that consumers now can be said to own the companies’ brands. Social media is an important element of the tourism companies’ marketing strategies. Consumers increasing usage of social media means that companies today must be present online. Furthermore, the study has shown that tourism companies have only seen positive effects of their viral marketing campaigns. The campaigns have the effect of consumers integrating with the companies’ marketing and spreading the companies’ brands within their social networks. This creates a positive relation between company and consumer.

In order to introduce innovations successfully in a company is vital to have a continuous process of learning and knowledge creation, and in small and medium-sized companies this learning process is centered on the entrepreneur´s character. In service companies, particularly those belonging to the tourism segment, the use of innovations is an essential condition for survival, and besides seasonality that characterizes tourism services, the segment faces a highly unstable environment, with customers looking for differentiated services more and more. Hence, the present study identified the types of innovation used by small and medium-sized tourism companies in Aracaju and analyzed how entrepreneurs learn to innovate. To achieve this goal, a conceptual model was built based on the type of innovation used by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2005), according to Larsson´s interorganizational learning concept et al. (1998), learning type adopted by Conlon (2004) and Nonaka´s and Takeuchi´s learning dimension models (1997), Rae and Carswell (2000) and Politis (2005). The research strategy adopted was to study multiple cases and eight cases concerning small and medium-sized hotels/inns and travel agencies in Aracaju city. To collect data, we used a semistructured interview guide, applied personally to the owners of the hotels / inns and travel agencies. In addition, in order to ensure the quality of the study, we also used the techniques of document analysis and direct observation. From the data analysis it was possible to verify that the surveyed companies are trying to innovate in different ways, and the implemented innovations include the four types of innovation defined by the OECD (2005): service innovations, process, organizational and marketing. Concerning the influence of the entrepreneurial learning for introducing these innovations, it was found that the entrepreneurs undergo a continuous learning process to innovate, and this learning occurs both as individual and from established relationships with other individuals (group learning) or institutions (interorganizational learning) being individual learning the one that occurs through observation and practical experience of the entrepreneur, highlighted as a major form of learning for innovation. / Para que as inovações sejam introduzidas com sucesso em uma empresa é fundamental que haja um processo contínuo de aprendizagem e geração de conhecimento, sendo que nas pequenas e médias empresas esse processo de aprendizagem está centrado na figura do empreendedor. Nas empresas de serviço, particularmente as que pertencem ao segmento turístico, a adoção de inovações é uma condição essencial para sobrevivência, pois além da sazonalidade que caracteriza os serviços turísticos, o segmento enfrenta um ambiente altamente instável, com clientes que buscam cada vez mais serviços diferenciados. Diante disto, o presente trabalho buscou identificar os tipos de inovação adotados pelas empresas turísticas de pequeno e médio porte da cidade de Aracaju e analisar como os empreendedores aprendem a inovar. Para alcançar esse objetivo, foi construído um modelo conceitual baseado na tipologia de inovação adotada pela Organização para a Cooperação e o Desenvolvimento Econômico (OCDE, 2005), no conceito de aprendizagem interorganizacional de Larsson et al. (1998), na tipologia de aprendizagem adotada por Conlon (2004) e nas dimensões dos modelos de aprendizagem de Nonaka e Takeuchi (1997), Rae e Carswell (2000) e Politis (2005). A estratégia de pesquisa adotada foi a de estudo de casos múltiplos e foram analisados oito casos de hotéis/pousadas e agências de viagem de pequeno e médio porte localizados na cidade de Aracaju. Para coletar os dados, foi utilizado um roteiro de entrevista semiestruturado, aplicado pessoalmente aos proprietários dos hotéis/pousadas e agências de viagem. De forma adicional, visando garantir a qualidade do estudo, foram também utilizadas as técnicas de análise documental e de observação direta. A partir da análise dos dados foi possível verificar que as empresas pesquisadas estão buscando inovar de diversas formas, e as inovações implementadas incluem os quatro tipos de inovação definidos pela OCDE (2005): inovações de serviço, processo, organizacionais e de marketing. No que se refere a influência da aprendizagem empreendedora para introdução destas inovações, verificou-se que os empreendedores passam por um processo contínuo de aprendizagem para inovar, e este aprendizado ocorre tanto individualmente, como a partir dos relacionamentos estabelecidos com outros indivíduos (aprendizagem grupal) ou instituições (aprendizado interorganizacional), sendo a aprendizagem individual, que ocorre através da observação e das experiências práticas do empreendedor, destacada como uma das principais formas de aprendizado para inovação.