Tourism organisations are increasingly capitalising on the potential of social media, with many finally catching up with consumers, according to the organisers of the Social Media Tourism Symposium (SoMeT).
It is the second time digital marketing agency Think! Social Media has held the conference Down Under, with chief executive Rodney Payne confirming that Australia is in line with the global trend.
The international company currently works with seven main Australian clients and although there has been a recent surge in interest, the company is actually working to streamline its portfolio of clients in order to offer a more in-depth, tailored and long-term service.
“As people spend more money online and starting to adjust their businesses around the web and are finally catching up with consumers, we have newer and bigger clients,” he told Travel Today.
“At same time, we are focused on growing the SoMeT brand starting with the three conferences that we’ve got. Basically, we’re taking everything we’ve learned through our tourism clients and are sharing it with the rest of the industry through SoMeT.”
The company works predominantly with destination marketing organisations, with Payne adamant there is no conflict of interest because of the considerable advantages of “cross-pollinating” ideas.
He highlighted the Cheat on your City collaboration between Montreal and Toronto as an example. The campaign aimed to break down the long-running rivalry between the two cities by using a street level Skype-style screen with a livefeed of the other city to encourage residents to pay it a visit.
While he recognised that different ideas were needed for different clients, Think! encourages one underlying “baseline strategy”.
“Every destination should be focusing on experience first rather than advertising, with a focus on delivering a top quality experience on the ground that makes people want to share things before and after the trip, online and offline,” Payne said.
“Now that we’re all on mobile devices, all that matters is what people say about you and the best way to change that or affect that is to deliver a really remarkable experience.”
Social media can be used as a tool to figure out where improvements need to be made, or to determine what the opportunities are, he continued.
“Next, instead of throwing a boatload of money at advertising, just work with advocates – digital influencers, consumers, TripAdvisor, destination experts, bloggers… You want to get consumers telling your story for you.”
But he stressed that most important of all is a “really clear vision” for the destination – something which many organisations are lacking.
“You need to have something that no one else has.”
SoMeT is taking place on July 16 and 17 in the Barossa Valley. Stay tuned for more coverage from the event.
