To stay relevant, travel companies need to embrace digital technology and rethink the way they do business. This was the overarching message at the recent E-Tourism Africa Summit.
Opening the two-day event, Minister of Tourism, Derek Hanekom, said technology was opening a direct artery that allowed tourists to interact with the destination they were visiting as well as each other. For the travel trade, he said it was a cost-effective route to market their business, adding that the industry should create enabling environments to allow tech-savvy travellers to share their experiences.

Damian Cook, CEO of E-Tourism Frontiers and creator of the E-Tourism Africa Summit, said travel had become a user-controlled environment. “You can’t tell them what to do and if they don’t like it they’ll let you know.” Up to 95% of travellers said they used to Internet to research their trip, however, he said web use had declined by 70% as more and more people were using social media.
He said images were having less impact than they used to because of the volume of content available. Traditional, generic travel pics were no longer as effective as those with a strong message, conveying an experience to the audience. He said video was hard to ignore and that travel-specific searches on YouTube had doubled in the past year.
Social media was a major talking point at the summit and Cook said travel was the most popular shared experience. The line-up of speakers included representatives from Facebook, Twitter and Google who encouraged the industry to market themselves on their platforms with good content and interaction. 

Billy Lousteau, Client Solutions Manager for sub-Saharan Africa for Facebook, said in South Africa mobile presented a huge opportunity and this was where most people accessed the Internet. “You have to be mobile optimised to do well on social media.”

Brett St Clair, Google for Work Country Manager South Africa, said: “The world seems to have been taken over by children with devices. We are forced to change but we still travel the same way.” However, he added that to be discovered online, travel businesses needed to immerse themselves in digital technology. He said that Google loved social media as it was often rich content that focused on experiences. Brett added that companies shouldn’t worry about the burden of technology by introducing and running expensive admin systems. Instead they should worry about their customers and how to inspire them. 

Sonal Patel, Twitter Exchange Manager, said four in every ten Twitter users followed travel brands. She also said every second someone tweeted about a hotel, while every two seconds there was a tweet about a flight. She offered five tips for using the platform effectively: know your audience; build a wider audience; tweet regularly; engage your followers and track your success.