Press information:

GNTB brings first Social Travel Summit to Leipzig

Frankfurt am Main, 24 February 2014

Social media marketing (SMM) is becoming increasingly important for the travel industry. According to a recent study by Google, 85 per cent of all travellers are already researching their destinations online. It is for this reason that the German National Tourist Board (GNTB) is bringing the first Social Travel Summit http://thesocialtravelsummit.com/ to Leipzig on 15 and 16 April 2014. The event is being run by blogger and media network ‘iambassador’ in partnership with the Reiseblogger Kollektiv. Destination partners are the GNTB and Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH.

During the SMM conference, attendees will have the opportunity to speak with the world’s 50 top travel bloggers and to gain insights into the future of social networks and the potential they hold for global marketing. In workshops, social media experts will be presenting best practice examples of how to generate online content, discussing strategies with participants and developing ideas with them on how collaborations between the travel industry and social media can be improved. The event is aimed at experienced users of new media as well as beginners. This is reflected in the broad spectrum of themes, which range from practical guidance on how to use the photo and video sharing platform Instagram or the social network Google Plus through to digital storytelling and talks and discussions on the future of social media.

“Travel and tourism are highly relevant in Facebook. Word-of-mouth marketing through social networks therefore plays a major role in travel planning – around 60 per cent of prospective travellers call upon peers and social networks for this, according to a study by Google. I am delighted that we were able to attract an event as groundbreaking as the Social Travel Summit to Germany,” says Petra Hedorfer, Chief Executive Officer of the GNTB.

Volker Bremer, Managing Director of Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH, adds that “Few other cities hold as much fascination for bloggers as Leipzig with all its many facets. We are thrilled that Leipzig will be hosting the first Social Travel Summit.”

After the Social Media Summit, 25 bloggers will be discovering Destination Germany for themselves between 17 and 19 April when they will be reporting live via Twitter, Facebook or their blogs. During these blogger tours, the focus will be on the UNESCO World Heritage sites and the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, as well as nature and culture in Destination Germany.