Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), which is responsible for developing the emirate's tourism industry, has signed up a US-based Web expert to guide the emirate’s tourism industry on ways to maximise its Internet marketing.

Laszlo Horvath, founder of ActiveMedia, a global online search, advertising and media agency and a digital marketing authority, will deliver a workshop on search engine maximisation to ADTA’s stakeholders, partners and marketing professionals within the Travel and Tourism Agencies Council (Attac).

Horvath’s workshop, part of a Business Breakfast Briefing programme launched by ADTA’s professional development team, will be held on May 10.

Horvath, a much sought-after international speaker on online marketing, branding, internet strategy and advertising, will guide Abu Dhabi’s tourism professionals on ways to increase and upgrade their knowledge of search engines as product search and visibility tools on the information super highway.

The Hungarian-born Harvard Business School graduate and founder of CEO Clubs International, who uses his award-winning company to place his clients on top of search engines’ results, says increasingly tourists are now relying more on search engines to find and buy their travel products.

“The touch point for new customers is not a company’s website: it is the result pages of the search engines,” said Horvath.

“I hope to show Abu Dhabi’s tourism professionals how to improve their digital footprint and increase their search engine optimisation. It is not enough to have a website on the Internet; it also has to be visible.”

Horvath added that many businesses are not yet aware of the importance of search engines, their benefits and ways of maximising their business digitally.

“Companies should use search engines to drive web traffic to their website, increase sales locally and internationally to improve revenues, as well as learn to control and protect their digital footprint and reputation on ‘alien territory’,” he said.

“In essence we will focus on turning websites from cost centre to profit generators by increasing visibility, sales and ultimate profit,” Horvath added. – TradeArabia News Service