Online and Offline Networks: Social Media Usage within the Hungarian Wine SMEs

Abstract

Social media technologies become mainstream, modify personal relationships and generate new opportunities

for knowledge sharing and facilitating collaboration. Most of the people use these tools to develop personal networks,

gather information or manage business processes, communication and marketing. As a result organizations are finding the

way to integrate social media into the essential infrastructure of their business strategy. The region of Balaton is the second

most popular tourist destination in Hungary, so the sustainable development and the collaboration of its enterprises are

essential. The purpose of the research is to explore the networks of the wineries, gastronomy units and start-ups of the

Balaton Uplands, and to explore the characteristics of knowledge-based networking (social media) tools. The selection

criteria includes the age of the organizations, the size (number of employees) and generational differences. Qualitative

research methodologies are applied as it seeks to acquire deeper and more subtle knowledge for some selected businesses.

The qualitative research uses the case study methodology. This paper explains the whole research process by exhibiting

research questions, hypothesis and the research model and shows the summery of the first 2 case studies.