Geo-location – bragging about where you are – is the next big thing in social media networking that will revolutionise the way people socialise, advertise and consume.

So says Diego Lofeudo, Expedia’s Regional Director of Market Management for the Eastern Mediterranean and Africa, who was speaking at the 4th annual E-Tourism Africa Summit which took place in Cape Town last week. “The new burning question in social media networking no longer is “what’s on your mind” (Facebook) or “what is happening now” (Twitter), but “where are you” (Geo-location)?”

Other future trends, he says, are viral marketing – Internet users passing on a marketing message - and augmented reality, which combines the real and virtual world through computer-generated graphics in users’ field of vision.

“Social media,” he adds, “is word of mouth, but on steroids”. Consumers, he explains, have become “prosumers”, a mix of producer and consumer, meaning they produce and share online content. Social media marketing (SMM) and Social Media Optimisation (SMO) techniques are therefore important in order to manage a company’s reputation, as a powerful new communication platform and to manage one’s online community. He advises travel companies to advertise their brand on social media; blog and comment on other blogs; and to make their website easy to find on the Internet. He says the return on Investment (ROI) of online marketing is measurable because advertisers only pay when consumers click on their website. Online marketing gives companies the flexibility to change their marketing strategy at any time and to segment their target audience.