Use of e-marketing tools as communication management in the tourism industry

Innovative processes in the tourism industry are usually defined by improving customer services and by investing in Information and communication technology (ICTs). Tourism companies cooperate with developing countries and their attractiveness on the international tourism market as well as with communication of the image concept. New technologies facilitate the availability of tourism services by offering customer-friendly services. Although the tourism business is considered as a pioneer in the adoption of new technologies, studies have shown that new technologies often seem be inadequate, and their impact assessment is not systematic. The aim of this research is to define the potential improvements of the e-marketing within the tourism industry through the characterization of the importance of tourism innovation, evaluation of the key e-marketing communication tool preferences from the point of view of the Lithuanian tourism users. Overall, 384 tourists were surveyed to achieve the research objective. Findings show that e-marketing tools used in the Lithuanian tourism industry are effective, although, there are strategies that are not fully operational or not used at all.