Kenya taps into APTA to increase visitor volumes

Kenya is increasing its penetration into the US market through travel agents focusing on promoting African destination.

Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) will be lobbying for more travel agents to enlist Kenya’s tourism products and experiences for sale during the Association for the Promotion of Tourism to Africa (APTA) forum.

As one of the main sponsors of the forum themed “AFRICA INSPIRES”, KTB will get an opportunity to promote the destination to a highly targeted travel trade audience.

The forum is set to take place between 13^th and 14^th, September 2019 in, Chicago, Illinois.

KTB hopes to Increase in the number of APTA members selling Kenya from current 75% to 90%. According to consumer trends, 75% of all US international travel was booked via travel agents

The Association for the Promotion of Tourism to Africa (APTA) is the largest US Travel Agents Association that focuses on promoting African destinations to the retail travel agents and tour operators in the United States of America. The association has the highest number of African Travel specialists across USA.

APTA is scheduled to host its annual national forum in Chicago on 13^th and 14^thSeptember 2019. The national forum is considered an educational event for APTA members. The theme for this year forum is “AFRICA INSPIRES” The APTA platform provides KTB with an opportunity to promote the destination to a highly targeted travel trade audience.

This year KTB will be one of the lead sponsors of the APTA national event. The purpose of the sponsorship is to engage the US travel trade through various marketing opportunities provided under the sponsorship package.

According to consumer trends, 75% of all US international travel was booked via travel agents. Therefore, destinations need to consistently engage with travel agents to ensure that they remain top of mind.

APTA provides a platform where Kenya can be marketed as a destination to the highly targeted travel trade audience

The APTA national forum thus seeks to:

Update the US travel trade on KTB marketing initiatives and destination Kenya updates
Educate the trade on Kenya’s top and signature experiences marketing model
Educate the trade on Kenya’s Unique Selling Propositions
Obtain constructive feedback that may feed into KTB’s strategy in North America and improve marketing effectiveness
Obtain key learnings from the joint APTA/ KTB educational events
Evaluate Kenya’s sales performance in the market through engagements with the trade

KTB will also explore the possibility of implementing a trade incentive campaign targeted towards APTA members. The incentive will entail hosting the top 5 APTA members with the highest Kenya sales (during and after the campaign) to a fam trip. KTB will make the official announcement to the APTA members during the national forum.

KTB will use the APTA platform to promote the top and signature experiences marketing model. This will be done using interactive destination presentations and exciting games to enhance the learning experience for the agents. Agents will have an opportunity to test their knowledge on Kenya by answering specific questions. Agents who are able to answer the questions correctly, will win instant prizes. KTB will also give all agents in attendance a gift bag with branded items, the Magical Kenya passport and other promotional materials.