Innovation is the name of the game in social media, especially so in the tourism industry, where the competition for visitors gets more intense every year. The Canadian tourism industry is leading from the front alongside ourselves at the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC).

Here’s another pack of fresh Canadian travel-industry approaches:

  * Facebook bestrides social media like a colossus. Tourism New Brunswick and Tourism Pemberton are two of the latest Canadian destinations to make their presence felt. Their fan pages let visitors find packages, share photos and videos and get tips from other fans.

  * Last year marked the first time that sales of smartphones outstripped those of PCs. The ever-popular Winterlude, with its three weekends of icy fun in Ottawa, ON, and Gatineau, QC, had a new iPhone app with listings, a personal calendar and an embedded Google map.

  * BarZ Adventures has also developed a multimedia app for travellers, brimming over with Canada’s natural wonders and what to do in our major cities. There are tours of each province and territory, with more than 5,000 searchable points of interest. The app is divided into sections that include history, nightlife, essential services and adventure. There’s plenty here for everyone and it’s free from the Apple app store and Android marketplace.

  *  The good tourism folk in Bruce County, ON, have been so industrious on social media you wonder if any of them get any sleep! Not only do they have a vigorous Facebook account and engaging Twitter presence on two accounts, they have more than 100 videos on YouTube and Vimeo. This year, they’re looking at more mobile engagement as well through Foursquare.