Skift Take
Lonely Planet has built a dedicated, engaged audience around the world by mixing big brand initiatives and projects tailed at specific audiences.
Thick guidebooks covered in stickers and torn in the corners used to be the tell-tale sign of a traveler. Although some tourists still are engrossed with words in print instead of the sites in front of them, many are now also staring at smartphone screens.
Besides the obvious opportunity to share content online, the Internet also gives travel brands the chance to engage with the travelers reading their tips. It appears; however, that outside of forums, few brands are truly talking to their readers.
Last month we launched our first data dashboard in beta, SkiftSocial, read more about the launch here, and what it means for social media monitoring in the travel industry.
Who's following who
We ranked the seven most prominent guidebook companies on their social media presence. The companies, in order of their Twitter followers, are as follows:
Company
Twitter Followers
Facebook Likes
Lonely Planet
1,006,507
1,004,119
Frommers
285,752
24,065
Fodors
248,003
22,333
Rough Guides
31,365
22,247
Rick Steves
28,024
117,256
