The future of meetings - Rohit Talwar

The Future of Meetings –
Competing for The US Market
Rohit Talwar – CEO – Fast Future Research

Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions -
Holland Marketing Congress – Amsterdam RAI
February 5th 2013
rohit@fastfuture.com www.fastfuture.com

Contents
• Presentation p. 3

• About Fast Future p. 35

• Image Sources p. 43

• Background Notes p. 48

International Events (ICCA 2011 Data)
• No. of international meetings rotating
to 3 or more cities globally declined for
16 years to 2011 – all time low = 2010

• Europe second most popular after
‘worldwide’ (55% of meetings)

• Asia and Middle East / Africa – share
risen over the decade, Latin America
up since 2006

• Europe / USA regained market
share in 2011 – decline since 2003

• Europe – houses most
associations with international
rotating events (~59%)

Country Rankings

Source: ICCA 2011 Country and City Rankings Report. May 2012. www.iccaworld.com

European Rankings


City Rankings


2011 International Meetings (ICCA Rating)
5.5M Total Participants / $561 Average Spend

535 30.2%
Average Participants Biggest Category:
(662 in 2002) 50-149 Participants

3.78 45.4%
Average Length (Days) Proportion in Hotels

2013 Meetings Abroad (M&C)

Source: M&C magazine. 1 April 2012

What Types of
US Meetings Go Abroad? (M&C)
• Corporate planners:
– General meetings (74%)
– Incentive trips (52%)
– Board meetings (35%)
– Trade shows (28%)
– Product launches (22%).
• Association planners:
– Annual meetings (72%)
– Board meetings (55%)
– Trade shows/Conventions (50%)
– Chapter meetings (30%)
Source: M&C magazine. 1 April 2012.

AIBTM – Top 10 Sectors - 2012

Source: AIBTM and The Right Solution . June 2012.

Incentive Travel Trends 2013 (M&C)
80% of US planners will take events overseas:

• Caribbean / Bermuda (56%)

• Europe (49%)

• Mexico (33%)

• Canada (24%)

• Central / South America (11%)

• Asia (11%)

• Africa (4%)

• Australia / New Zealand (2%)


Budgets and Markets (AIBTM 2012)
• Mean event budget (USA) = $95,098
• 80% of US buyers have a budget >$100 000
• 2013 - 58% expect higher volume, 45% forecast lower budgets, 48% will use new
destinations
• Top 10 countries for US buyers:
1. US
2. France
3. Spain
4. Canada
5. Mexico
6. China
7. UK
8. Italy
9. Germany
10. Brazil
Source: AIBTM. June 2012.

Selection Criteria (M&C)

Accommodation Quality (73%) Airlift (71%)

Destination Reputation (68%) Security (62%)

Key Partners (M&C)

• 41% use NTO’s
convention bureaus and
other DMO’s, 48%
infrequently, 11% never

• 63% Value and reward
relationships with
international suppliers
(hotelier, destination
management executive)


Accommodation Abroad (M&C)

80% Prefer a Fixed Price in US$

Event Owner
Destination Support Needs (ASAE)

Localised organising committee, research, support, partnerships,
endorsements, marketing, sales, PR, contracts and language

Concerns for Planners / Owners (ASAE/M&C)

Dollar Buying Services in
Weakness Euros / VAT

Collecting Fees / Risk Management /
Paying Bills Locally Currency Hedging

Event Planner / Owner - 2013 Priorities
Focus on content
Weak economy
Gamification
Rising travel costs &
Team adventure lower budgets driving
pressure for local
Technology - hybrid events
events, online events,
on-demand events and Tougher approvals
virtual meetings
Public / shareholder
Location / ease of scrutiny
access
Rising social media
Sustainability engagement

Healthy F&B Security / stability

Use of New Technologies (AIBTM 2012)

Source: AIBTM. June 2012.

Imex Power of 10 Study:
The Future Event
Experience – Key 76% ROI
Priorities of Survey
59% Personalisation
Respondents
51% Interactive Learning

Future
Delegate
Expectations
48% Pre/Post-Engagement 61% Cost Reduction
Desired Event
48% 15-20 Min ‘TED’ Talks Future Design 54% Quality & Novelty
Innovations Priorities
41% Delegate Led Content 43% Shorter Lead Times
Design of the
Learning
Experience

59% Build Delegate Insight

55% Deepen Dialogue

52% Tailored Speeches

To reduce vulnerability to economic cycles, the industry
must demonstrate tangible return on investment for
event owners, delegates, sponsors, exhibitors and other
key stakeholders

60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Strongly Agree Slightly Slightly Disagree Strongly
670 respondents Agree Agree Disagree Disagree

Cost Control – What key tactics will event owners
adopt to reduce financial risks?

Closing unprofitable Running shorter events
meetings

Risk and reward sharing Co-location of events to share cost

Corporate Events – What will the key drivers be in the
design of corporate events over the next decade?

Multiple goals e.g. motivation, Experimentation with new formats to
education, external relationship accelerate learning, creativity and change
building and PR

Use of events to build brand identity
and develop ‘sticky’ customer and
partner relationships

Association Events – What will the key drivers be in the
design of association events over the next decade?

Event as a platform to bring
new ideas to members

Experimentation with
Personalisation of the
new pricing models
delegate experience

Merger of events

Venues – What are the critical development priorities for
meeting venues over the next decade?

Stay up to date with new and
emerging technologies

Identify new Develop flexible service
markets e.g. emerging offerings
industry sectors,
professions and
associations

Increase the flexibility of
meeting spaces

Hotels – Over the next decade, what are the critical
priorities for hotels serving the meetings sector?

Increasing the flexibility of
meeting spaces and public
areas

Developing new business Ensuring block room
models booking prices are
competitive

Offer competitive technology
solutions

CVBs – What are the key priorities for convention
bureaus over the next decade?

Adopt a multi-channel Increase the quality and Create tools and services to
approach to promoting the range of support offered to assist delegates when
destination event owners and meeting visiting the destination
planners

Event Agencies – Over the next decade, what are the key priorities
for the agencies involved in different aspects of event delivery?

Provide strong proof of Launch innovative new
return on investment products and services

Develop and retain top talent Aligning with the client’s
longer term strategy

The biggest challenge for the business events sector over the next
decade is proving it is a vital contributor to economic development and
the knowledge economy and not just a branch of tourism

45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Strongly Agree Slightly Slightly Disagree Strongly
533 respondents Agree Agree Disagree Disagree

1. Evolving a Distinctive
Industry Persona

2. Thinking and Acting Strategically

3. Personalizing and Deepening the
Learning Experience

4. Experimenting with Business
Models and Revenue Streams

5. Developing Tomorrow’s
Leaders and Managers

Fast Future –
Core Services
• Live Events - Speeches, briefings and workshops for executive
management and boards of governments, investment funds,
development agencies , companies, airlines, airports, hotels, venues,
CVB’s and associations
• Future Insights - Customised research on emerging trends, future
scenarios, technologies and new markets
• Immersion - ‘Deep dives’ on future trends, market developments,
emerging issues and technology advances
• Strategy - Development of strategies and business plans
• Innovation - Creation of business models and innovation plans
• Engagement - Consultancy and workshop facilitation

Fast Future
• Research, consulting, speaking, leadership
• 5-20 year horizon - focus on ideas, developments, people,
trends and forces shaping the future
• Clients
– ING, ABN Amro, Laing O’Rourke
– Marks and Spencer
– Airports - Aeroports de Paris / Schiphol Group
– Vancouver Airport Services
– Industry Associations – ICCA, ASAE, PCMA, MPI
– Corporates - GE, Nokia, Pepsi, IBM, Intel, Orange,
O2, Siemens, Samsung, GSK, SAPE&Y, KPMG,
Amadeus, Sabre, Travelport, Travelex, ING,
Santander, Barclays, Citibank, DeutscheBank
– Governments - Dubai, Finland, Nigeria, Singapore,
UK, US
– Convention Bureaus – Seoul, Sydney, London, San
Francisco, Toronto, Abu Dhabi, Durban, Athens,
Slovenia, Copenhagen
– Convention Centres – Melbourne,
Adelaide, Qatar, QEIICC
– Hotels - Accor Group, Preferred,
– Intercontinental
– PCO’s - Congrex, Kenes

Our Services
Bespoke research; Identification &
Analysis of Future Trends, Drivers &
Shocks
Public Speaking, In-
Company Briefings, Accelerated Scenario
Seminars and Workshops Planning, Timelining &
Future Mapping

Personal Futuring for Leaders
and Leadership Teams Expert Consultations &
Futures Think Tanks

Identification of
Design & Facilitation of Opportunities for
Innovation, Incubation & Innovation and Strategic
Venturing Programmes Investment
Strategy Creation &
Development of
Implementation
Roadmaps

Example Projects
• Public and private client research e.g. :

– Reinventing the Airport Ecosystem

– Development of Market Scenarios, emerging trends and strategies for key clients

– Government and OECD Scenario Projects – e.g. Migration 2030, Future of Narcotics, Chemical Sector, Family 2030

– Scenarios for the global economy for 2030 and the implications for migration

– Designing Your Future (Published August 2008) – book written for the American Society of Association Executives & The
Center for Association Leadership

– Global Economies – e.g. The Future of China – the Path to 2020

– The Shape of Jobs to Come – Emerging Science and Technology Sectors and Careers

– Winning in India and China

– The Future of Human Resources

– Exploiting the Future Potential of Social Media in UK Small to Medium Enterprises

– Convention 2020 – the Future of Business Events

– Future Convention Cities Initiative – Maximising Long-term Economic Impact of Events

– One Step Beyond – Future trends and challenges for the events industry

– Hotels 2020: Beyond Segmentation – Future Hotel Strategies

– The Future of Travel and Tourism in the Middle East – a Vision to 2020

– Future of Travel and Tourism Investment in Saudi Arabia

Hotels 2020 – Objectives
• Identify key drivers of change
for the globally branded hotel
sector over the next decade
• Examine the implications for:
 Hotel strategy
 Brand portfolio
 Business models
 Customer targeting
 Innovation

Convention 2020
• Global strategic foresight study to help the meetings industry prepare for
the decade ahead - Industry-wide sponsors
• Multiple outputs Nov 2009 – December 2011
• Current studies on future strategies for venues and destinations

Rohit Talwar
• Global futurist and founder of Fast Future Research.
• Award winning speaker on future insights and strategic
innovation – addressing leadership audiences in 40 countries on
5 continents
• Author of Designing Your Future
• Profiled by UK’s Independent Newspaper as one of the Top 10
Global Future Thinkers
• Led futures research, scenario planning and strategic
consultancy projects for clients in telecommunications,
technology, pharmaceuticals, banking, travel and tourism,
environment, food and government sectors
• Clients include 3M, BBC, BT, BAe, Bayer, Chloride, DTC De
Beers, DHL, EADS, Electrolux, E&Y, GE, Hoover, Hyundai, IBM,
ING, Intel, KPMG, M&S, Nakheel, Nokia, Nomura, Novartis,
OECD, Orange, Panasonic, Pfizer, PwC, Samsung, Shell,
Siemens, Symbian, Yell , numerous international associations
and governments agencies in the US, UK, Finland, Dubai,
Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.
• To receive Fast Future’s newsletters please email
rohit@fastfuture.com

Image Sources p.1
Page:
3. http://www.europeancitiesmarketing.com/userfiles/image/Logos/ICCA%20logo%20colour.jpg
7. Clockwise:
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http://www.searchmesh.net/images/conference2.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Bali_conference_inside.jpg
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conventions.com/uploadedImages/MC_Departments/Features/2012/04apr/MCGP0412P10BAR.jpg
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11. http://www.maskworld.com/pix/costumes/large/91099-urlauber-fat-suit-tourist-fat-suit.jpg
12. http://www.eventplanningblueprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/event-job.jpg
13. Clockwise:
http://strizzle.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/hotel-security-systems.jpg
http://www.emaar.com/Images/Courtyard_tcm3-6604.jpg
http://www.golfaroundscotland.com/images/Gailes-Hotel-Bedroom.jpg
14. Top, bottom:
http://www.worldforum.nl/uploads/sfSympalBossMediaPlugin/image/partenershipsXL_a9a09e27db0d20cd2a36943
87590578c26633974.jpg
http://www.maskworld.com/pix/costumes/large/91099-urlauber-fat-suit-tourist-fat-suit.jpg

Image Sources p.2
15. http://www.meetings-conventions.com/uploadedImages/MC_Departments/Features/2012/04apr/MCGP0412P18.jpg
16. http://successonline.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/building-the-bridge-to-success.jpg
17. Inside out; clockwise:
http://www.meetings-conventions.com/uploadedImages/MC_Departments/Features/2012/04apr/MCGP0412P20BAR.jpg
http://blog.thecompanywarehouse.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/VAT-registration1.jpg
http://www.fxtrademaker.com/images/hedging_forex.jpg
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www.eurorateforecast.com
18. http://www.babusinesslife.com/Media/images/F0110H---British-Airways-Business-Life---Future-Travellers-by-Justin-Metz-
aac1a06a-5eb3-415b-9ad9-6634d4d0c91b.jpg
19. http://www.aibtm.com/RNA/RNA_AIBTM/PDFs/2012/AIBTM%20research%20presentation%20150612.pdf
21. http://www.crandsustainability.telefonica.com/en/transparency_dialogue/skateholders.php
22. http://3riversepiscopal.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/orland-episcopal-church-to-close-feb-12.html
http://irishherault.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/decimal-clock.jpg?w=350&h=262
23. Clockwise:
http://blog.aveventsolutions.com/blog/news-and-tips/virtual-or-in-person-meeting-what-makes-sense-when
http://msp.nutickets.com/brandbuilding
http://www.avanderw.co.za/potential-fields-multiple-agents-multiple-goals/

Image Sources p.3
24. Clockwise:
http://mastersincommunication.org/wp-content/uploads/communication-skills.jpg
http://www.executivecareerinsights.com/my_weblog/online-personal-branding/
http://www.mergersolutions.com/merger_flash_link.jpg
http://venturebeat.com/2010/04/14/twitter-promoted-tweets/
25. Clockwise:
http://static.briansolis.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/virtualworld.jpg
http://actioncoachmalcolmupton.com/defining-good-service/
http://www.efficient.ws/technopole-innovia-with-leigh-weigh-structure-and-high-efficiency/2010/08/31/
http://www.mundus-net.com/pricing.jpg
26. Clockwise:
http://www.exinteriordesign.com/flexible-spaces-arquitectura-renovated-bringing-more-life-into-an-old-building
http://www.caroleparkerballoons.co.uk/
http://ucspro.com/
http://www.socialedge.org/discussions/business-models
27. From left to right:
http://www.imabgroup.net/posts/2012/february/what-integrated-marketing-eric-overman.html
http://www.homeeddirectory.com/support_group

Image Sources p.4
28. Clockwise:
http://www.mirlabs.org/innovation.php
http://www.ab.ust.hk/hseo/sftywise/200803/page4.htm
http://robonwriting.com/2012/03/27/does-talent-exist/
http://magictorch.com/?p=123
29. http://nextlogics.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/economic-inequality8.jpg
30. http://artofourmind.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/personalities1.jpg
31. http://www.oytun.co.uk/wp-content/themes/mimbo2/images//innovation.jpg
32. http://setbcprojects.edublogs.org/files/2012/01/21titlepic-1i9jsfs.jpg
33. http://www.subhub.com/custom/5ways/m3f85a9df.pnghttp://www.sybase.jp/detail?id=1056075
34. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__mMx7lCefGY/SdtWKzFJ-
6I/AAAAAAAAAN0/LUwVd6Bz3UY/s400/Nurturing+wallpaper.png

Overview of Global Travel 2020

http://rockcheetah.com/blog/images/amadeus-goldrush.jpg

Background: ICCA 2002 – 2011
Statistics Report on the Meetings
Industry

http://www.europeancitiesmarketing.com/userfiles/image/Logos/ICCA%20logo%20colour.jpg

Rotations
• The World/International arena is still the biggest rotation area in numbers of
meetings
• The numbers of meetings that rotate worldwide has been decreasing over
the past 16 years, reaching an all-time low the past year (2010).
• The Europe Rotation area is the second biggest and its market share
shows a slow but steady increase throughout the decade
• The Africa/Middle East rotation area has seen an increase in numbers of
meetings throughout the decade and the number of events which rotate
within Latin America shows a steady increase since 2006.
• The number of events which rotate within Asia and Asia/Pacific both seem
to be stabilising over the past 4 years around 6.1% and 2.9% respectively.

Source: ICCA 2011 Statistics Report 2002 - 2001. July 2012. www.iccaworld.com

Association Headquarters
• Europe is still the home region to most of the headquarters of associations
which organise meetings that are included in the ICCA Association
Database. Approx. 59% of the headquarters based in Europe over the past
10 years.
• North America has increasingly more headquarters, at the cost of the
market share of the third biggest home region Asia /Middle East.
• Despite these small relative changes the distribution of headquarters over
regions throughout the decade remained stable.


Regional Destination
Statistics
• 55% of the meetings in 2011 were in Europe
• North America and Europe gained in popularity, putting an end to the trend
of decrease in their market shares since 2003.
• Latin America has also gained in relative popularity with its market share
steadily increasing throughout the decade.
• Despite ups and downs Asia/Middle East has seen a rise in relative
popularity over the past decade almost being a counter mirror for Europe
and North America.
• Africa and Oceania have stayed rather stable over the years.


Country Destination Statistics
• The 2011 country top 10 showed little change, with the top six repeating
their rankings, led by the USA, Germany and Spain.
• The Netherlands and Austria appeared at 9th and 10 th respectively, taking
the place of Switzerland, which dropped from 10th to 12th, and Japan,
which in the aftermath of cancellations due to the earthquake and tsunami,
understandably dropped from 7th to 13th.
• The USA saw by far the biggest jump in the number of events held, up by
136 to a new record of 759 meetings in 2011


Participant Trends
• The average number of participants per meeting reached its lowest point of
the past decade in 2011 with 535 participants per international meeting,
which is a drop of 36 participants per meeting compared to 2010.
• In the year 2002 the average number of participants per meeting was the
highest over the past 10 years with an average of 662 participants per
international meeting.
• Since the beginning of the decade the average number of participants per
meeting dropped each year, with exception of the small revivals in 2006 and
2008, continuing the trend of international meetings getting smaller.
• North America has been the region with the largest average numbers of
participants per meeting over the past decade, with an average 732
participants per meeting in 2011, followed by Latin America.
• Both their averages have decreased throughout the decade. The average
numbers of participants per meetings in all other regions have gone up in
2011


Trend Towards Smaller
Meetings
• Over the past 10 years there has been a big expansion of the market share
of the smallest meetings (50-149 and 150-249 participants) at the cost of all
meetings attracting over 500 participants.
• Since 2009 the smallest meeting size is the biggest category;
– 30.2% of all the identified meetings that were organised in 2011 have
attracted between 50 and 149 participants.
– This is a growth of approximately 11.1% over the past decade


Size of Meetings
• Estimated total number of participants to all 2011 meetings is over 5.5
million, compared 5.4 million people attending meetings in 2010
• For the last ten years the U.S.A. has had the highest number of participants
with 563,830 participants in 2011
• The largest number of international association meetings over the past 10
years were annual meetings (59,8% in 2011).
• The relative number of annual meetings has increased over the past 10
years.
• The relative number of biennial meetings is gradually dropping over the
years (22, 8 % in 2010 to 21,5% in 2011)


Trends in When and where
Meetings are Held
• 16,3% of all meetings organised are in September - the highest number for
any month for international association meetings
• Over the decade September is followed in order of popularity by June,
October and May.
• The average length of a meeting in 2011 was 3.78 days, which is slightly
higher than the average figures of the previous years.
• Over the last decade the usage of Meeting facilities in Hotels has been
gradually increasing at the expense of the Conference/Exhibition Centre.
• Since 2005 hotels as a preferred venue have retained this first position with
almost 45.4% market share in 2011 compared to 34,9% at the beginning of
the past decade


Subject of Meetings
• The most popular subject is still Medical Science.
• The absolute numbers of meetings organised on Medical Science increased
almost each year over the past ten years. However, the relative popularity
went down over the decade to an all-time low of 17.3% of all meetings in
2009.
• Second preferred subject over the past ten years has been Technology,
which went up in popularity over the decade.

Fees
• The average fee per delegate per meeting in 2011 is USD 561.34.
• Over the first few years of the decade the average registration fee per
delegate per meeting increased until 2005. A
• short-lived increase in 2006 was followed by a decrease lasting until 2009.
• 2009- 2011 showed a slight increase again.
• The average total expenditure of all meetings included in the ICCA
Association Database was USD 13,747,787,985 in 2011.

Finance & US Meetings Abroad
• The dollar is generally weak against the Euro
• Buying services in Euros and taking registration fees in dollars can cause a
deficit in the event budget
• Financial concerns for US associations include:
– the need for a bank account in the country hosting the event or the
ability to partner with an in-country PCO which can handle the collection
of sponsorships and registration fees and pay bills
– the ability to claim VAT back after the event, the need to pay VAT to
local vendors/ charge VAT for the event and how to do this
– the possibility of buying Euros at a set price in the future – ‘buying
forward’ to reduce the risk of losing on currency exchange fluctuations
and other financial mechanisms to reduce costs such as the use of a
local partner for purchasing/ bank accounts

Source: ASAE. November 2007. http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/EnewsletterArticleDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=29097

Success in Foreign Markets
Some of the key success factors for organizing international meetings for
US associations according to ASAE writer Ajay Bhojwani include:
• Conducting market research to uncover opportunity and an event strategy
for focus;
• Having endorsements from local authorities and partnerships for financial,
content, and audience access support;
• Organizing committees with recognized regional knowledge opinion leaders
to ensure content localization;
• Having direct and indirect marketing with direct sales (e.g. telemarketing)
with a focus on local and regional markets where the meeting is going to be
held;
• Focusing on local and regional press activities to build the brand of the
meeting, create momentum, and attract participation;

Source: ASAE July 2010. http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/EnewsletterArticleDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=51580

• Having strong financial and risk controls supported from experienced
regional event organizers;
• Using very simple and easy-to-understand language for all communication
materials;
• Advising on international codes for telephone numbers and working hours,
keeping in mind the time differences and weekends;
• Being persistent and patient, which is absolutely essential, because some of
the agreements and discussions with local authorities and associations (in
some regions) can take longer than expected;
• Being prepared for a significant amount of last-minute tasks and changes.

Source: ASAE July 2010. http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/EnewsletterArticleDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=51580

• Laws that regulate events and labour laws need to be understood by US
event owners
• Language barriers are a concern
• Time differences while planning an event – i.e. late night calls
• Security is a concern
• Contracts in local currency

Source: ASAE. May 2011. http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/EnewsletterArticleDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=76912

Global Planner Report 2012
• Global Planner is a survey of 126 US meetings professionals (83 of whom
work for corporations and 43 for associations) on the topic of US events
abroad by the Meetings & Convention (MC) Magazine
• The latest survey available is Global Planner 2012 (Published 1 April 2012).
They survey was conducted in 2011 and the results are presented for 2012
and 2013

Source: M&C magazine. 1 April 2012. www.meetings-conventions.com/articles/global-planner-2012/a47554.aspx

Top Destination Rankings
2011
Where were US meetings held in 2011?:
• Europe was the top international destination for U.S. Groups in 2011,
according to 60 percent of those polled.
• Canada was the second-most popular spot for international meetings,
according to 54 percent of respondents
• followed by Mexico with 40 percent.
• Rounding out the list were Asia (38 percent), followed by
Caribbean/Bermuda (32 percent), Central/South America (26 percent),
Australia/New Zealand (17 percent), Middle East (15 percent) and Africa (8
percent).


Top Destination Rankings
2011


2012 Meetings Abroad
Where will US meetings be held in 2012?:
• In 2012 Europe retains the top spot for meetings held outside the U.S.,
according to 59 percent of respondents, who will hold meetings there.
• The next most popular regions are Asia and Canada, each cited by 39
percent of those polled,
• followed by the Caribbean/Bermuda (30 percent),
• Central/South America (26 percent),
• Mexico (26 percent),
• Middle East (15 percent),
• Australia/New Zealand (12 percent)
• Africa (2 percent).
• Two percent of respondents will not hold any international meetings in 2012.


2013 Meetings Abroad (M&C)
Where will US meetings be held in 2013?:
• Europe should hold its top spot for 58 percent of planners surveyed.
• Canada again will rank second (42 percent will hold events there),
• followed closely by Asia (41 percent).
• Next most popular for 2013 will be Mexico (31 percent),
• Caribbean/Bermuda (30 percent),
• Central/South America (30 percent),
• Mexico (30 percent),
• Australia/New Zealand (15 percent),
• Middle East (13 percent)
• Africa (10 percent).
• Just 3 percent of respondents don't plan to hold meetings outside the U.S.
in 2013


What Types of Meetings Go
Abroad?
• Types of meetings corporate planners hold outside the U.S. are:
– general meetings (74 percent),
– incentive trips (52 percent),
– board meetings (35 percent),
– trade shows (28 percent)
– product launches (22 percent).
• For association planners:
– 72 percent take their annual meetings to international destinations
– board meetings (55 percent),
– trade shows/conventions (50 percent)
– chapter meetings (30 percent)


Number of Meetings
How many meetings are planners organizing in a year and how will this
change?:
• Most respondents (59 %t) typically plan one to five meetings annually
• 16 % plan six to 10
• 11 % plan more than 20
• 7 %plan 11 to 15,
• 2 % plan 6 to 20.
• Compared with 2011, 36 percent expect the number of international
meetings their companies will hold in 2012 to increase, 56 percent will hold
the same number of meetings and just 8 percent said the number of global
meetings will decrease.
• Looking ahead, 32 percent of respondents will hold more meetings outside
the U.S. next year compared with 2012, 64 percent foresee no change and
only 4 percent expect the number to decrease year-over-year.


Size and Duration?
• Size of groups.
– More than half (54 percent) said their group size for international events
will stay the same this year compared with 2011,
– 21 percent said the number will increase
– 8 percent it will decrease;
– 7 percent were unsure.
• Duration of events.
– The majority of respondents (56 percent) said their last international
meeting ran three to four days
– 22 percent met for five days or more
– 22 percent gathered for two days or fewer.


Selection Criteria
What matters to planners when they evaluate international destinations?
• Top criteria are quality of accommodations (cited by 73 percent of survey
respondents)
• good airlift (71 percent),
• reputation of the destination (68 percent)
• security (62 percent)


Final sign-off?
Who has final say over the choices made for international meetings?
• For corporate meetings:
– the majority of those polled (46 percent) said the choice ultimately is finalized
by the CEO or other top-level executive,
– followed by a team of planner and third party (22 percent),
– the planning department (8 percent),
– the director of marketing or sales
(5 percent),
– The travel manager/director (4 percent)
– The procurement department (1 percent).
• For the association meetings:
– 32 percent said the CEO or other top-level executive
– the board and a team of planner and third party (each with 16 percent),
– the planning department (13 percent)
– the meeting chairperson (10 percent).


Budgets
What was the size of the budget for a planners previous meeting? :
• 25 percent had a budget for their last international meeting in the range of
$150,000-$499,999
• 17 percent reported having budgets of $10,000 to $49,999
• 14 percent spent $50,000-$99,999;
• 9 percent had budgets of $1 million or more
• 6 percent had budgets of less than $10,000.


Budgets
For their next international event, planners reported generally similar
budgets to their last:
• 26 percent citing funds of $150,000-$499,999
• 18 percent in the $50,000-$99,999 range.
• 14 percent reported budgets of $500,000-$999,000
• 13 percent have budgets of $10,000-$49,999
• 12 percent reported budgets of $100,000-$149,000
• 10 percent have budgets of less than $10,000
• 7 percent fall into the $1 million or more category.


Use of CVBs/ NTOs
• Obtaining promotional materials (brochures, CDs, maps) remains the top
reason planners use convention and visitor bureaus and national tourism
organizations, cited by 44 percent of respondents
• followed by setting up site inspections (40 percent)
• restaurant recommendations (37 percent)
• pre/post-event tour suggestions (34 percent)
• theme party ideas (33 percent)
• availability of meeting planning guides (30 percent).


Contacting Planners
• E-mail is the best way for international suppliers to reach planners,
according to 84 percent of those polled
• followed by fam trips (45 percent
• Internet/other resources (43 percent)
• trade shows/networking events (38 percent)
• direct mail (23 percent)
• a phone call (10 percent).
• Just 1 percent of planners favour receiving a fax from global suppliers.


Accommodation Abroad
When it comes to selecting accommodations for their attendees in 2012:
– 44 percent of those polled bring groups to upscale hotels.
– 22% use luxury properties
– 14% use midscale properties
– 20 % of respondents use a combination of the above.
– None of the respondents used budget properties for their
international events this year.
– In M&C's 2011 survey, just 11%of respondents said they used luxury
properties for their meetings outside the U.S.
• 80 % of those polled said a guaranteed price for hotels or services in U.S.
dollars makes an international destination appealing to their organizations.


Incentive Travel Trends 2012
• More than 80 percent of planners who hold motivational events will do so
outside the U.S. in 2012 or 2013, the highest such number since the
recession began in 2008, with fewer than 20 percent still staying close to
home.
• The size of incentive groups in 2012: the number is unchanged since last
year for 40 percent of those polled; 29 percent will see an increase in
participants, 9 percent anticipate a decrease and 22 percent are unsure.
• Destination rankings 2012 for incentive trips:
– The Caribbean/Bermuda is indeed the top destination by far for
incentive programs in 2012, as cited by 62 percent of respondents.
– Europe takes second place, per 38 percent of those polled.
– Mexico is in third place per 31 percent
– Canada (22 percent),
– Central/South America (11 percent),
– Asia (7 percent),
– Australia/New Zealand and the Middle East (each with 2 percent).


Incentive Travel Trends 2013
• Destination rankings for 2013:
– For 2013, the Caribbean/Bermuda will retain its top spot per 56 percent
of those polled,
– followed by Europe (rising to 49 percent),
– Mexico (33 percent),
– Canada (24 percent),
– Central/South America (11 percent),
– Asia (11 percent),
– Africa (4 percent)
– Australia/New Zealand (2 percent).


International Partners?
• National tourist offices, convention bureaus and other destination
management organizations offer assistance to planners. However, these
are not highly used by US planners.
– nearly half of those surveyed use such resources "infrequently"
(association planners were more likely to use them their corporate
counterparts).
– Another 28 percent use them often,
– 13 percent always use them
– 11 percent never use such agencies.

• Who to work with?
– More than half (55 percent) of respondents prefer to work with both the
U.S. and international branch of a tourist office or convention bureau
– 26 percent favour working only with U.S.-based representatives
– 19 percent prefer dealing solely with the overseas office


Choosing a Destination
• Personal Relationships?
– For 63 percent of planners, having a personal relationship with an
international supplier (hotelier, destination management executive)
influences their destination decisions
– 22 percent say such connections matter very little
– 10 percent say they have no effect.


Concerns for Planners?
• Terrorism remains the most pressing concern for the meeting professionals
queried. One third (35 percent) say it significantly influences their plans
concerning international meetings or incentives.
• Other key considerations affecting plans include the U.S./global economy,
according to 30 percent of respondents
• local health concerns (28 percent)
• natural disasters (24 percent)
• public and/or media perceptions of meetings and events (20 percent)
• international currency exchange rates (15 percent).


US Outbound Travel Stats – US
Office of Travel & Tourism (OTTI)

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-istiATb-obs/TZBtCQhJlzI/AAAAAAAAAdM/Ua2qp5JzO0s/s1600/trends.jpg

US Outbound Travel Stats – US
Office of Travel & Tourism (OTTI)
• U.S. international outbound travel has increased-with U.S. travel to overseas
markets reaching 20.0 million until August, up 7 % this year
• The U.S. Office of Travel & Tourism Industries (OTTI) recently announced
that U.S. international outbound travel was up 4% in August 2012, and up 3% for
the year, with 42.2 million American travellers departing during the first eight
months of 2012. U.S. travel to overseas markets reached 20.0 million, up 7
percent this year.
• From the 47% of all U.S. outbound international travel, Europe received the
largest share at 19% ( see following chart)
• According to a previous report by Global Business Travel Association, American
business travelers were expected to take 437.9 million trips in 2012, down 1.2%
from an estimate made in April 2012 by the travel and meetings trade group. The
outlook for 2013 was a forecast of 435 million trips. Overall travel spending was
expected to be $268.5 billion in 2013.

Source: About Tourism. 23 November 2012. http://aboutourism.wordpress.com/2012/11/23/u-s-outbound-travel-forecast-business-travel-prospects-market-
analysis/

US Outbound Travel Stats
2011/2012 - OTTI

Source: About Tourism. 23 November 2012. http://aboutourism.wordpress.com/2012/11/23/u-s-outbound-travel-forecast-business-travel-prospects-market-
analysis/

US OTTI Stats on Outbound US
Travel
(2011 – latest available stats show growth in US business travel)

Source: US office of travel and tourism industries. 2011 US travel to Europe statistics. http://tinet.ita.doc.gov/outreachpages/download_data_table/2011-US-to-
Europe.pdf

US OTTI Stats
Netherlands has a declining market share of US travel from 2010 – 2011, with business
travel as the only sector to see growth, there may be a need to invest in this market

Source: US office of travel and tourism industries. 2011 US travel to Europe statistics. http://tinet.ita.doc.gov/outreachpages/download_data_table/2011-US-to-
Europe.pdf

IBTM Global Meetings Industry
Research Americas Region 2012

IBTM 2012 Research
• Mean budget per even in the USA = $95,098
• 80% of buyers in the USA have a budget in excess of $100 000
• Top 10 countries for US buyers in the next 12 months (June 2012 – June
2013)
1. US
2. France
3. Spain
4. Canada
5. Mexico
6. China
7. UK
8. Italy
9. Germany
10. Brazil

Source: AIBTM. June 2012. http://www.aibtm.com/RNA/RNA_AIBTM/PDFs/2012/AIBTM%20research%20presentation%20150612.pdf

IBTM 2012 Research


IBTM 2012 Research

Source: AIBTM and The Right Solution . June 2012.
http://www.aibtm.com/RNA/RNA_AIBTM/PDFs/2012/AIBTM%20research%20report%20%28word%20doc%20with%20cover%20page%29pdf.pdf

IBTM 2012 Research
Europe holds a large percentage of US outbound meetings market


Global Business Travel
Association (GBTA) Research

• At the close of 2012, annual U.S. business travel spending is estimated by
GBTA to have grown 1.6% to $254.9 billion, on a -1.9% decline in trip
volume to 436.5 million person-trips. The spending increase was mainly due
to rising travel rates.
• This increase in spending for 2012 was also a downgrade from GBTA's
previous forecast of 2.6% last quarter, reflecting the ongoing uncertainty of
the fiscal cliff debate and the economic impact of Superstorm Sandy.
• The GBTA BTI™, a proprietary index of business travel activity, is estimated
at 117 for Q4 2012, with no movement from the previous quarter. Because
of slower-than-expected U.S. economic growth, the Business Travel Index
(BTI) never reached its pre-recession high of 120 in 2012. The closest it
came was 118 in Q2 2012.
• However, the BTI is currently expected to rise steadily through 2013,
reaching 119 in Q1 2013 and 125 by the end of the year.

Source: GBTA. 8 January 2013. http://hub.gbta.org/resources2/view/profile/id/24533

• Business travel spending growth slowed through the tail end of 2012 as
companies postponed critical investment decisions until after the U.S.
presidential election and Congressional debate on the fiscal cliff.
• However, the business travel forecast for 2013 should be more positive, provided
there is continued easing of economic and political uncertainty - presenting an
early indication of greater corporate confidence in spending decisions.
• U.S. business travel spending is expected to rise 4.6% in 2013 to $266.7 billion,
on a slight -1.1% decline in trip volume to 431.8 million person-trips for the
year. The key factors in 2013 business travel spending growth are projected to
be:
– Increasing international outbound travel spending - projected to rise 5.9%
– Increasing group travel spending - projected to rise 5.2%
– Very modest price inflation - indicating that companies will be spending more
real dollars on business trips.
• Spending growth in 2013 should begin modestly, at 2.0% in Q1 and 2.9% in Q2,
and then pick up the pace with rates of 6.4% in Q3 and 7.2% in Q4.

Source: GBTA. 8 January 2013. http://hub.gbta.org/resources2/view/profile/id/24533

• Since the turn of the millennium, spending on global business travel has
grown at an annual rate of 4.5 percent to a 2011 level of $1.02 trillion USD.
Average annual growth has swung wildly – from a loss of -11.4 percent in
2001 as the 9/11 attacks compounded the downward pressure from the
early-2000s recession – to 15.9 percent in 2007, the peak of a global
expansion. Corporate spending on business travel hit the brakes in 2009,
falling 7.5 percent as a result of the Recession

• In 2012 the business travel market continues to be dominated by a few
major players – over two-thirds of global spending stems from the U.S.,
China and Western Europe, GBTA says. Spending on business travel is
projected to hit $1.07 trillion this year, 4.6 percent growth over 2011.

Source. Meetings Review. 24 July 2012. http://www.internationalmeetingsreview.com/americas/a-tale-two-economiesgbta-on-travel-spending-93201

• GBTA expects spending to advance another 8.1 percent in 2013 as the
economy works through its current doldrums. By 2016, GBTA projects total
spending on business travel will hit $1.4 trillion, representing a compound
annual growth of 7.7 percent.

• However, the downside risks to the outlook for global business travel are
abnormally high, hinging on the direction and severity of the crisis in the Euro-
zone.

• The GBTA BTI trends show stark differences from country to country. Germany
and the U.S. have both experienced modest growth in business travel – 27
percent and 15 percent, respectively, since the GBTA BTI base year of 2005.
Meanwhile, the emerging business travel market of India has more than
doubled to 228 and China has more than tripled its 2005 value of 100 to 312.


• These trends will persist through the end of the outlook’s horizon in 2016,
when China’s GBTA BTI value will again double to 660.

• Likewise, India’s current GBTA BTI value will more than double over the
next five years to 482. The mature travel markets of Germany and the U.S.
will see much more modest growth over the period – Germany’s GBTA BTI
will grow another 24 percent to 158 and the GBTA BTI in the U.S. will grow
another 18 percent to 135.


MICE Planner Trends 2013
Top trends for US meeting planner’ needs and wants in 2013:
1. Location. For business meetings, properties should be easy to get to. That
means flying into a major airport and minimal transfer time to a hotel. Meeting
planners are looking to optimize meeting and social time and not spend them
on transfers. Location is followed by rate, flexible space and amenities as
concerns.

2. Sustainability. Meeting planners are ahead of leisure travellers when it
comes to choosing green efforts. Forty-five percent of planners say eco-
friendly practices are ‘somewhat important’ when choosing a venue, while an
additional 18% say they’re ‘extremely important.’

3. Healthy F&B. More than 78% of planners identified culinary offerings as an
important part of their selection process. Less than 10% cited a ‘signature
chef’ as part of that. Instead, planners call for food that focuses on health and
nutrition (43%), as well as specialized dietary offerings (35%).

Source: Meetings Net. 3 December 2012. http://meetingsnet.com/site-selectionrfps/5-things-meeting-planners-want-2013

MICE Planner Trends 2013
5. Team Adventure – When asked about teambuilding trends, more than half
(54%) indicated that adventure/active options were of the greatest interest.
Teambuilding is starting to mirror leisure trend patterns. Planners are
looking for a local, authentic experience.

5. Technology. Meeting planners are looking for brand reputation. Half check
TripAdvisor and other social media reviews before deciding on a hotel or
resort. They want to know what others are saying and how hotels are
listening and talking back. More than 36% noted an increase in technology
integration with meetings compared to a year ago, with strong indications
that the trend will continue. Streaming media, web conferencing and on-site
video production were the most common uses, with more than 25% of
meetings relying on at least one.

Source: Meetings Net. 3 December 2012. http://meetingsnet.com/site-selectionrfps/5-things-meeting-planners-want-2013

2013 MICE Trends Predictions
– AMEX Research

http://vacationcom.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/travel-agent-of-the-future.jpg

2013 Predictions – AMEX
Research
AMEX research indicated four expected trends in MICE in the US for 2013:
1. Budget Challenges Mean More Local Meetings – To maintain current levels of
meetings activity in an environment where budgets are likely not growing in step
with costs, many companies are transitioning from global to national or from
national to regional locations for more meetings. Also, there is a trend of holding
meetings in unique destinations such as restaurants or aquariums for potential
additional savings.

2. Security and Stability Impacting Destination Choice – A continued emphasis
on duty of care is translating to a focus on safety and security amidst potential
political instability when planning a meeting in 2013. Suppliers indicated that this
can sometimes be an advantage; for instance, some major hotel brands located
in regions with political instability said they are often chosen based on the
perception amongst meeting planners that they offer a more consistent, higher
level of security.

Source: AMEX. No date available (report launched late 2012). http://about.americanexpress.com/news/pr/2012/meetings-forecast.aspx

2013 Predictions – AMEX
Research
3. Meetings Approvals Becoming More Challenging – A significant portion of
meeting planners in all regions indicated that gaining approvals for their meetings
is becoming at least slightly more difficult. In addition, there is an emerging trend
of meetings budgets not being approved until companies' latest financial data is
available. This dynamic is putting even more pressure on already reduced lead
times and can negatively impact hotel negotiations, potentially leading to higher
costs.

4. Increasing Engagement Via Social Media – Meeting planners are responding
to the expectations of today's meeting attendees by employing social media to
increase the value of events throughout their lifecycle. Leading up to events,
planners are using social media to connect with attendees and to connect
attendees to one another so they can maximize their time at an event. During
events, social media is being used to drive even deeper connections and more
immersive education sessions, presentation Q&A and other activities. After
events, social media is also being used to extend event communities and foster
connections made during events.

Source: AMEX. No date available (report launched late 2012). http://about.americanexpress.com/news/pr/2012/meetings-forecast.aspx

2013 Predictions- Meetings and
Incentive Travel Magazine

http://emergentbydesign.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/ebd-foresight-feature.jpg

1. The general economy will remain weak and organizational expenditures
will be closely scrutinized by management, stakeholders and the public.
– This means that M&E budgets will remain tight and most organizations will
want to ensure that the money they spend will generate a reasonable
return.
– Planners who can demonstrate that their events achieve objectives –
generate revenue, build loyalty, increase sales, provide needed education
and motivation, and/or stimulate the organizational culture – will be most
successful.
2. The public and shareholders will often see M&E expenditures as a
frivolous spend (which will prompt governments and organizations to
make politically correct decisions instead of wise investments).
– Event planners will need to demonstrate that they have spent money
wisely and that they were not influenced by personal gain, reward points
or any other factor that might be seen as unethical.

Source: Meetings and Incentive Travel. 10 January 2013. http://www.meetingscanada.com/magazine/news/blogs/industry-predictions-for-the-year-ahead/

3. The ranks of independent planners will continue to grow.
– Since few companies have a corporate-wide policy governing the planning
of events, decision-makers continue to turn to the cheapest providers of
services (and this is often small companies or former corporate planners
who were laid off during the recession and became independents).
4. Planner margins will continue to shrink.
– Too many planners competing for projects; an inability to differentiate
services except by price; and a lack of professional standards in our
industry all combine to drive prices and margins down.
5. Event content will be increasingly important and suppliers who can
demonstrate how their services help achieve real long-term results will
succeed, while those who are perceived as “fluff” will struggle.
– Planners must become content experts – know what is available and be
able to articulate why the inclusion of a specific team-building exercise or
speaker will help achieve the desired objectives.


6. Price increases for transportation and at venues will promote more
regional events and fewer large gatherings.

7. Networking will remain important both for planners and suppliers.
– If your reputation is on the line for every event you work on, then you
are going to turn to the people you know and trust.

8. Technology will continue to drive change in our industry – hybrid
events, online events, on-demand events and virtual meetings will
continue to supplement or replace traditional gatherings.


Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT)
Business Travel Trends Forecast

http://www.carlsonwagonlit.com/export/sites/cwt/en/global/tmi_img/business-travel-
market-trends-2013.jpg

Successful Meeting Magazine picked the top forecasts from CWT’s ABC
of 2013 forecast:
• Hybrid meetings on the up, as companies continue to focus on cutting and
controlling costs in 2013
• Online reviews: Hotel reviews by corporate travellers will improve the
travel experience and boost negotiations with hoteliers. While one in three
business travellers already post reviews online of properties they stay at,
social reviews will hold more sway in the business travel program with the
adoption of new corporate review sites."

• Gamification: Game techniques will become more popular as a way to
reinforce compliance with the travel program

Source: Successful Meeting Magazine. 30 November 2012. http://www.successfulmeetings.com/Conference-News/Research-White-Papers/Articles/Hybrid-
Meetings-Among-Top-Business-Travel-Trends-of-2013,-CWT-Reports/

• Virtual customer service: New virtual agents or 'avatars' provided by
airlines, airports and TMCs will assist travellers with booking, check- in and
other questions

• Social media: Social media strategies will be implemented by almost two
thirds of global travel managers as a key action to improve traveller
experience

• Apps: Technology will be the traveller's best friend, with mobile/WiFi
connectivity and a growing range of business travel apps making travel
smoother and more productive

Source: Successful Meeting Magazine. 30 November 2012. http://www.successfulmeetings.com/Conference-News/Research-White-Papers/Articles/Hybrid-
Meetings-Among-Top-Business-Travel-Trends-of-2013,-CWT-Reports/

2013 MICE Technology
Predictions from Corbin Ball

2013 Tech Predictions from
Corbin Ball
Meetings technology will continue to get cheaper and easier to use.
• This trend in software programming is driven by continued advances in web
services and open-source technology. This makes it easier, cheaper and
faster to create, distribute and use technology to help in meeting
planning. There are hundreds of free, freemium, low cost, and do-it-yourself
(DIY) options providing lower costs and more flexibility for planners.
Examples include ContantContact’s new Online Event Registration starting
at $20/month, a small fraction of typical online registration costs.
• Guidebook offers a free meeting DIY mobile guide app with up to 500
downloads per event. Google Hangouts On Air offers free multipoint video
conferencing, steaming and recording. Joomla provides free web site
building and content management tools with over 9,000 plugins. …just to
name a few! These forces are also driving mobile app development with
hundreds of thousands for free or very low cost app available; many of them
of great help to meeting professionals.

Source: Corbin Ball. No date. http://www.corbinball.com/articles_technology/index.cfm?fuseaction=cor_av&artID=9020

Corbin Ball
IPads and tablets will make paperless conference binder a reality.
• The days of finding the event planner by looking for the person carrying the
thick 3-ring binder full of paper are rapidly drawing to a close. Meeting
planners are trading their heavy paper “conference bibles” for svelte iPads
and other tablets. These light, portable, instant-on, GPS-capable devices
with large, high-resolution screens and with a host of free and very low cost
apps make accessing and editing conference-related documents possible.
See The Paperless Conference Binder – Using Tablet Computers and iPads
at Events for more detail including a listing of many of these apps.


Corbin Ball
Paper will not be needed for conference attendees.
• Paper event programs and exhibition guides go out of date almost the minute
they are printed.
• Mobile event guide apps are light, searchable, updatable, and interactive
providing a much richer event experience for attendees.
• There are a host of options to improve the attendee experience including fully
searchable conference agendas, full exhibition information, interactive
exhibition/venue floor plans/maps, networking, social media integration, group
or sub-group alerts, polling, surveys, wayfidning, GPS and local area
information.
• Treasure hunts/gaming, CEU tracking, ticketing, event access control,
appointment making, personalized agenda making, and business card
exchange just to name a few. There are sponsorship advertising opportunities
to offset the costs and most come with very valuable event analytics to see
what, when, and where attendees are interested.


Corbin Ball
• There are a number of models including free/freemium
(Guidebook, Leebug), venue-provided (SwiftMobile), HTML5 web apps
(EventMobi, Zonear), HTML5 web app integrated with registration
companies (eTouches, Ungerboeck Mobile, Certain Mobile)
• More information about things to consider when building an event app is
at Birth of a Tradeshow App,
• The elimination of paper course notes at many events has reduced
audience learning and retention. Fortunately, there are apps and services
filling this gap. EventPilot provides the ability in its app for attendees to view,
take notes, and save presentation slides, posters, and other documents.
NiceMeeting, MyThoughts and others set up local Wi-Fi servers to deliver
the presentation slides to attendee iPads and other tablets. These
presentation management tools also add polling and Q&A capabilities as
well. They engage the audience, increase audience retention, while
eliminating the need for paper as well.


Corbin Ball
Meeting planners with will use mobile apps to help with hotel site
inspections.
• On the broad view, destinations, hotels and convention centres are building
apps to sell and engage meeting planners, attendees and visitors before
they ever come. Three outstanding iPad examples are: Tourism Vancouver,
the Heathman Hotel, and the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
• All three are nicely designed, interactive, GPS-enabled with rich mapping,
and provide a much richer and intimate experience than a paper brochure
or a web site. Expect to see applications similar to these become the norm
for all meeting venues and destinations.


Corbin Ball
Tiered free Wi-Fi will become available in many convention centers and
hotels.
• The explosive use of mobile devices for attendees, meetings planners and
exhibitors is making access to Wi-Fi at events a necessity, not an
option. More than 60% of Twitter and Facebook postings are mobile. Onsite
gaming, networking, messaging, polling, survey and lead exchange apps
requiring internet access are becoming common place.


Corbin Ball
Event Wi-Fi problems will get worse before getting better.
• This demand for Wi-Fi at events is growing by high double-digit numbers
each year. Tablet computers, on average, use 400% more bandwidth than
other mobile devices and are becoming the fasted adopted technology
hardware ever.
• The recent Dreamforce Conference 2012 in San Francisco had over 10,000
simultaneous Wi-Fi users. The London Olympics logged more than 1 million
Wi-Fi accesses on the BT network during the games.
• The good news is that the technology exists to provide very high density
delivery of Wi-Fi. Xirrus provides Wi-Fi arrays that can handle up to 1,792
simultaneous users from a single access point.
The bad news is that the equipment and bandwidth is expensive and many
meeting venues are lagging far behind in the ability supply the increasing
tsunami of demand.


Corbin Ball
New indoor positioning options will provide better event and exhibition
indoor way finding and mapping.
• Standard GPS does not work indoors. Standard Wi-Fi triangulation only
gets to about a 90 foot (27 meters) accuracy -- not good enough for precise
tracking though an exhibit hall, venue or for person-to-person finding at an
event.
• Google Maps released its indoor mapping API last November. As of last July
2012, more than 10,000 indoor maps are available including airports,
museums, shopping centers, and hotels.
• Companies such as Wifarer are using similar Wi-Fi fingerprinting technology
that works quite accurately in some situations.
• IndoorAtlas recently announced an indoor positioning system using the
earth’s magnetic waves (similar to how birds find their way).


Corbin Ball
• Sherpa has recently launched WaveLocator, a novel indoor positioning
system using ultrasound. Combined with ActivTouch, their app, the
microphone of the user's smartphone receives specific codes used to help
attendees to quickly identify their current location in the venue and map
routes. Users can also locate their friends and business acquaintances. A
hall can be set up and mapped in just a few hours using Sherpa's tiny,
battery-powered ultrasonic transmitters that can unobtrusively be attached
to pipe/drape or signage.
• Society in general has come to rely on GPS for finding our way in cars.
There is a natural demand to bring this technology indoors to venues of all
types including event facilities. These multiple paths mentioned point to this
becoming a significant event trend to watch.


Corbin Ball
Internet video will see unprecedented growth for event marketing,
communication and audience engagement.
• Internet video has great opportunities for used for events. Videos can engage
viewers, can increase retention of content, are accessible via many devices,
and can be easily shared via social media channels. Videos can improve
search engine rankings and video email marketing has fully trackable and
higher click-through rates compared to traditional marketing methods. The
costs to produce and distribute video from point of inception to delivery have
reduced dramatically.
• The development of BOBtv from bXb Online, a global online event platform
designed specifically for events and associations supports this trend. It is a
standardized way of making event video content available to remote attendees
either live or on-demand and is the winner of this year’s EIBTM Technology
Watch for meetings technology innovation. BobTV, or similar technology, has
the ability to become the moderated “YouTube” channel for event
communication.


Corbin Ball
Hybrid events will continue to grow spurred by an increasing variety of
low cost distribution options.
• HD video cameras are common in smart phones. Multipoint HD video
communication is available free through Skype and Google+
Hangouts. Hangouts On Air provides free video streaming and recording
services. YouTube provides free a free video storage and distribution
channel. AnyMeeting provides WebEx-like video, desktop and slide sharing
with recording, survey tools, ticketing and other bells and whistles for free
for up to 200 attendees in its ad-supported version. The paid versions are
quite inexpensive as well.


Corbin Ball
Consolidation and acquisition of meetings technology vendors will
continue. Significant events technology acquisitions occurred this year:
• Active Network acquired StarCite. Previously, Active Network acquired
RegOnline and WingateWeb in 2008. StarCite previously acquired pioneering
events tech companies: b-there, RegWeb and Onvantage (a merger of
SeeUThere and PlanSoft in 2004). These acquisitions represent some of the
biggest and pioneering names in meetings technology.
• Cvent acquired CrowdCompass and Seed Labs (now CrowdTorch). This
significant move by a major registration into the mobile space will likely
continue. Cvent, having received $136 million in investment funding, more
acquisitions are likely to continue.


Corbin Ball
• These acquisitions point to a trend by larger event technology companies to
expand their offerings to move to a beginning-to-end solution in an integrated
platform. It is natural for a registration company, for example, to incorporate
mobile apps, using the same attendee/speaker and session data. Buying
rather building the technology is often the fastest was of accomplishing this
task. An integrated platform makes it simpler for the meeting planner (buying
from one technology provider instead of many) and for the attendees with
integrated technology solutions before, during and after the event. Expect to
see this more event technology acquisitions in 2013.


Corbin Ball
Event gamification will increase attendee engagement and drive
behaviour.
• Gamification makes a game out of traditionally non-game activities such as
an event. Games can be used to engage attendees in a variety of methods
including:
– achievement badges
– achievement levels
– leader boards
– a progress bar or other visual meter to indicate how close people are to
completing a task a company is trying to encourage, such as completing
a social networking profile or earning a frequent shopper loyalty award
– virtual currency systems for awarding, redeeming, trading, gifting, and
otherwise exchanging points
– scavenger hunts
– challenges between users


Corbin Ball
• According to Bunchball, “People have fundamental needs and desires – for
reward, status, achievement, self-expression, competition, and altruism among
others. These needs are universal, and cross generations, demographics,
cultures and genders.”
• Mobile technology opens up a wide range to gamification options for events. Here
are some examples:
PollEverywhere’s MIT $100K completion award
• Cisco’s efforts to engage virtual attendees
• SCVNGR challenges and scavenger hunts for events
• EventMobi’s GamifyApp for events
• BoothTag
• GoGames Convention Games
• PeopleHunt.me
• With the advent of multiple inexpensive mobile gaming tools, expect to see
significant increases in usage for events


Corbin Ball
Social media will continue to integrate in the meeting planning process to
engage attendees with new products continuing to emerge.
• Social media has become widely used for many events. Twitter event
hashtags are common and many companies and associations are using
Facebook and LinkedIn Pages to promote events. Polling and Q&A can be
managed via Twitter. Some registration companies such
as Amiando and EventBrite can use Facebook to sell event tickets.
• The ability to use social media to enhance networking at an event holds
very significant potential. Meetings were the original social media, and these
social tools have the potential to work very well for events and exhibitions.
Expect to see increasing use of mobile social media apps specialized for
events including Bizzabo, Shhmooze, Qrious, and PeopleHunt. Finding the
right contacts at an event can greatly improve the value – mobile social
media tools can help in this process


Corbin Ball
Despite the increased use of virtual meetings technology, face-to-face
meetings and tradeshows will remain viable (a repeat from previous
year’s predictions).
• Virtual meeting and webinar usage is up. However, meetings and
tradeshows continue to provide very good value for your education,
networking, and sales budgets. Events offer unparalleled opportunities to
bring buyers and seller together, to build relationships, to brainstorm, to
network.
• Although webinars are good for short information exchange, meetings offer
a much richer learning experience.
• There is no such thing as a “virtual beer!”


MPI: Future Technologies
Research
MPI reports the following headline findings and advice from the Leeds Metropolitan
University team that carried out research for the MPI Whitepaper on the future of
Meetings technology:
• Mobile devices in conjunction with social networks will empower delegates and
communities. Channel this energy for the benefit of your events.
• Virtual meetings will slowly become more widespread. Think about innovations
in handling meeting information and delegate participation.
• Invest in staff to keep ahead of technology advances. Determine who will own
social media channels and stay in contact with experts. Increase awareness of
any technology that may become disruptive.
• Realise the worth of good, motivated technical staff. Any lessons learned from
past technology investments, successes or failures, will make them better
equipped for the next challenge.
• Don’t bind yourself to vendor-specific technologies, because they may soon
become obsolete. Instead, rely on open standards, which are more future-proof
than proprietary concepts.
• Be prepared to take risks and equip yourself to make fast decisions. Sometimes
these won’t work out; allow for mistakes and learn from them.
• Don’t forget about the Cloud; it gives you flexibility and reduces risk.

2013 MICE Trends by Jeff
Hurt

http://www.timeincnewsgroupcustompub.com/sections/060529_Travel_cvr.jpg

Hurt
Jeff Hurt’s top 5 trends for conferences in 2013:
1. The Participation Economy
• From passive information consumption to actively contributing, discussing,
creating and participating.
• Conference attendees don’t want to spend $1,500 – $2,000 to attend your
event and then sit passively for four to six hours a day. It goes against what
they normally do. Instead, they want to participate. They want to engage
with others about the content that is being shared or about the needs they
face. Conferences have to move away from being just an information
channel providing data, facts and figures to consume. Instead they should
move to becoming a social channel engaging the audience in discussion
about that application of that content.
• Check out your current conference schedule. How much of it is passive,
consumption of information presented from a stage? If you want attendee
loyalty, you’ll want to ensure that a large portion of the conference schedule
allows for networking and participation.

Source: Velvet Chainsaw by Jeff Hurt. 2 January 2013. http://jeffhurtblog.com/2013/01/02/five-2013-conference-trends-watch/

Hurt
2. Social Sharing
• Social sharing is the broadcasting of our thoughts and activities. Regardless
of what you think, it is not a fad. It is a sociological phenomenon that
continues to occur at a rapid pace. This macro trend is affecting
conferences and events.
• Conference attendees will continue to share what they are doing at your
event and who they are doing it with. Some will share content. Some will
challenge what they hear from the stage. If your event is bland, little social
sharing will occur and this actually reflects a poor conference experience.


Hurt
3. The Content Economy
• Content could become your conference’s most valuable asset. You can no
longer afford to only have your compelling content released during your
conference. You need to be creating useful, fresh content to attract people
to attend your event and to keep them coming back to your site after your
event.
• Just putting up a conference website is no longer enough. Search engine
algorithms are good enough now that the most compelling content
dominates search results. If you want to dominate search results for your
conference, your conference website must have a continual stream of fresh,
new influential content. And you have to figure out how to repurpose content
from the conference to use after the event.


Hurt
4. The Smobile Web
• Social + Mobile = Smobile. Social and mobile are becoming more
dependent upon each other. A smobile web means that your attendees
expect the conference experience to be digitized for mobile and sharing.
Instagram and NFC (near field communication technology) are two
examples of experiences prepared for the smobile web.


5. Last Generation Sponsorship Hurt
• First generation sponsorship was about gaining exposure and awareness. This is
where many of our conference sponsorships still exist. The thought is that
flashing a logo in the midst of dozens of other logos in front of potential cynical
consumers equals marketing return.
• Second generation sponsorship was focused on sales promotions and vending
rights.
• The third generation was based on brand’s needs and what the brand can offer
potential customers.
• Last generation sponsorship is about nurturing a brand’s connection with a target
market. It’s about putting the target market’s needs first. This is very different than
seeing how many escalator, elevator and hanging banner ads a company can
secure. Savvy sponsors are demanding a new kind of experience with their
markets during conferences. The question is can you transition from the standard
sponsorship menu of choices to a customized sponsorship package.


Short Lead Times
• A June 2011 survey of 150 corporate meeting planners by Zentila, a Florida-
based hospitality technology startup, found that the typical booking window is
now only 36 days. Compared to lead times of three or four months in “the good
old days,”
• Scotia Capital in Toronto has seen lead times for annual conferences and golf
tournaments shrink from six or even 12 months to as few as three weeks
• Clients feel more comfortable asking for impromptu gatherings because they
know that, one way or another, an event planner will make it happen.
• Short notice allows some venues to fill gaps in their availability
• In a poor economy, companies tend to pare back meetings and conferences, or
they will wait until the very last minute to commit to a project. That’s exactly what
started happening in 2009, a trend also seen during previous economic
downturns
• As the economy continues to improve and demand for meeting space rises,
corporate clients may be forced to plan their events further in advance.

Source: Ignite magazine. No date available. http://ignitemag.ca/incentives_meetings/event_short_lead_times

The future of meetings - Rohit Talwar

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