Bringing People Together Safely Here are the safety protocols that meeting planners are implementing this year: • Requiring masks: 32% • Requiring proof of vaccinations: 43% • Requiring proof of negative COVID-19 test: 58% • Requiring onsite attendee temperature checks: 33% • Eliminating or reducing networking/social events: 19% • Moving to drive-to/regional meetings: 24% • Splitting meetings into smaller sizes: 30% • Offering hybrid meeting components: 16% Source: 2022 Meetings Today Trends Survey This amounts to about 11 million per day and over 1 billion per year. The average worker spends at least three hours a week in meetings, with about 30% spending over five hours per week in meetings. People are also meeting at conventions, with about 1.3 million people traveling for conventions and other business meetings every day in the U.S. Most of them are attending events close to home, traveling less than 250 miles. Only 7% of trips involve traveling further than 1,000 miles, according to Stratos Jets, a jet charter service. However teams communicate and learn, meetings will continue to evolve and expand. According to Knowland’s U.S. Meetings Recovery Forecast, the meetings and conventions industry will have recovered 58.3% of meetings volume by the end of this year, and by 2023, individual months are projected to recover to 2019 levels. Allied Market Research projects the global events industry (which includes meetings and conventions) to grow 11% annually from 2021 to 2028. By 2028, this industry could reach $1.5 trillion. When it comes to connecting with colleagues and clients, many professionals crave the in-person experience. One survey from PromoLeaf revealed that more than 70% of professionals prefer to attend meetings and events in person over the virtual versions. They say the best networking happens face to face and that body language is difficult to discern over video. Whether meetings and conventions happen online, offline or using a mix of the two, promotional products can help businesses boost engagement, drive home messaging and build valuable connections. When people can feel and hold a product in their hands, you can help boost an event’s ROE, or return on emotion. According to Harvard professors, 95% of purchasing decisions are based on emotions and not logic. The more gratified people feel attending a meeting or convention, the more success businesses can see. Read on for trends in meetings and conventions, and for some promotional ideas to create meaningful experiences. Market Snapshot Hybrid events are here to stay. More than three-quarters (77%) of meeting planners say they intend to offer hybrid events in the future, with another 10% saying they are considering them, according to the 2022 Meetings Today Trends Survey. These types of meetings and conventions accommodate attendees who value face-to-face interactions and those who prefer to participate remotely. Promotional products can be part of both experiences, whether attendees get logoed products at in-person seminars, or they receive them right at their doorstep. Micro events—smaller, more intimate gatherings—have also emerged as a trend in the meetings and conventions market. Businesses find these meetings appealing because they cover just a couple important topics over an hour or two. Attendees like these meetings because they can better understand what they heard rather than processing a full day’s worth of information. From custom notebooks and journals to logoed pens and laptop bags, brands can use promotional items to make a big impact at small events. Most Popular Meeting Destinations These cities draw more meetings and conventions than anywhere else in the country: 1 Orlando, Florida 2 Las Vegas 3 Chicago 4 San Diego 5 Atlanta 6 Washington 7 New York 8 Dallas 9 Nashville, Tennessee 10 Phoenix Source: Cvent 1 10 9 5 2 6 3 7 4 8 | APRIL 2022 | 41 GROW
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