The launch of a new social media symposium targeted at Australia's tourism industry comes as a growing number of organisations are seeking ways to capitalise on the power of the marketing tool, according to its organisers.
The Social Media Tourism Symposium, taking place at the University of Wollongong today and tomorrow, is the first such event to be held in Australia although its organisers, Think Social Media, have been running it in the US for several years.
Despite the time lag, Holly Galbraith, Think Social Media strategy manager, stressed that Australia was not behind the curve. However, she admitted tourism as a whole is lagging behind in the social media stakes.
"There is still a long way to go," she said. "There are still lots of lessons that tourism destinations around the world can learn from."
Galbraith revealed that the event will be attended by more than 120 delegates over its two-day duration.
"We have got tourism destinations from all across Australia coming – every state and territory is represented over the next two days," she said.
"That's a really good sign that people want to learn and that they want to learn from each other."
Key themes to be tackled at the conference include basic tactical measures that can be made using platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.
But more important is the idea of intrinsic change that will be a major discussion point at the symposium.
"It's about not just looking at social as something that you add on to your organisation but as something that you really incorporate," Galbraith said. ""It requires more than just the marketing team or a sales person."
Case studies will be presented to the audience from tourism representatives from around the world, but the emphasis will be on admitting the challenges rather than just "the shiny stuff".
"As an industry, if we can share those learnings when we'll all grow much faster," Galbraith said.
