Recent polls from eyefortravel, a leading research company on internet focused travel, suggests that 7 out of 10 travellers use the internet as their primary source of travel information – and almost half of the planet’s travel being distributed and booked online.

With faster online speeds, the dominance of e-commerce and the rise of social media networking – the global tourism business has been revolutionized. Add to this the global interest in Africa generated from the 2010 FIFA World Cupâ„¢, and it is critical that tourism companies in East Africa take advantage of online marketing opportunities.

E-Tourism Frontiers will be holding a two-day conference as well as a Travel Technology Exhibition in Nairobi on the 2nd and 3rd of September 2010. The E-Tourism East Africa Conference will help the sector understand and leverage the online opportunities and the new technologies available in the region.

Mr. Damian Cook, the CEO of E Tourism Frontiers explains, “Online sales have been have experienced major growth in the past year. Travel is now the number one selling commodity online and is generating over US $110 billion annually in sales. We must get more African tourism products available to the online travel shopper, especially following the massive interest in Africa after the World Cup”, said Cook.

Following the success of conferences held last year in South Africa and East Africa, the E-Tourism East Africa Conference, which is being sponsored by Safaricom, KCB and the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Nairobi, It will include presentations from some of the world’s leading experts on online tourism, including Trip Advisor, Expedia, WAYN.com and Google. Sessions will cover web site development, e-commerce, online reservations and booking, e-marketing, multimedia, Web 2.0 marketing, user generated content, social networks and mobile marketing.

Mr. Cook said many companies attending the previous events had already experienced major results and a revolutionized approach to marketing. “We have seen many companies switch to online marketing and invest heavily in their digital presence after attending our events. We have received great feedback especially from SMEs who have made the move online and then recorded a dramatic boost to their business. Uganda Wildlife Authority placed their Mountain Gorillas on Facebook last year, through the Friend a Gorilla programme. We also saw Expedia expand into East Africa as a result of our first conference in Nairobi in 2008”, said Damian Cook.

The E-Tourism East Africa Conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Upper Hill, Nairobi on the 2nd and 3rd September 2010. Registration for the E-Tourism East Africa Conference is now open at www.e-tourismfrontiers.com