Issue Contents
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Ray Bloom |
IMEX Meetings for Success |
Think big – start small – scale quickly IMEX Meetings for Success |
Bridge to corporate boardrooms Rod Cameron, Criterion Communications |
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Miranda Ioannou, SCS Limited |
What successful measurement looks like Dev Sharma, MCI |
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Edgar Hirt, AIPC and Congress Center Hamburg |
IAEE |
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DMAI |
Beijing conference draws top industry names PATA |
CIC announces additional international CMP exam dates CIC |
Positive response to Politicians Forum IMEX Politicians Forum |
Leading the way from Iceland to Serbia IMEX Future Leaders Forum |
Brenda Anderson, Site |
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Martin Sirk, ICCA |
Business platform with great potential tmf GmbH |
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IMEX Green Awards |
IMEX Wild Card |
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IMEX Meetings Under the Microscope |
Standing room only for Professional Development and Innovation IMEX Professional Development and Innovation Pavilion |
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Didier Scaillet, MPI |
IAPCO |
Association meetings sector shows resilience IMEX Association Day |
IMEX interview |
IMEX shortlisted for UFI award Heather Gough |
Nikki Williams |
PCMA convening leaders in Dallas Deborah Sexton, PCMA |
GCB launches CO2 Meetings Calculator Lutz Vogt, GCB German Convention Bureau |
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Paul Flackett |
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IMEX Briefing October 2009 pdf
Meetings mean success
With the launch last week of IMEX America, the IMEX Group has entered an exciting new phase. The new show will take place in Las Vegas from 11-13 October and will continue the IMEX commitment to delivering business opportunities, international hosted buyer programmes and industry-wide collaboration.
IMEX America will benefit from a strategic partnership with MPI, and Site will hold their 2011 Annual Conference immediately after the first show. ICCA, AIPC and ECM are all providing their support through a number of marketing and educational initiatives and ASAE will organise a dedicated day of education for association buyers the day before the show opens.
Plans for IMEX 2010 in Frankfurt continue apace with the emphasis on delivering more business for our exhibitors and making the process of doing such business as smooth, fast and efficient as possible all year round. Next year’s hosted buyer programme will again increase in size, with more buyers attending the show for two days or more. We also continue to focus on extending our ability to deliver long-haul buyers by working with an ever-increasing number of intermediaries.
It is imperative on all of us who work in the international meetings, incentive travel and events industry to continue to spread the message about the value of meetings, especially to industry leaders and, of course, those in power at local and national government level. Such lobbying continues to be of great importance, even as world conditions slowly improve. There is still plenty to be achieved and important principles – and corporate profits – at stake.
For that reason we address the issues raised by our new Meetings for Success initiative (in partnership with JMIC – Joint Meetings Industry Council) widely here. Meetings for Success is our combined effort to create a powerful working group that will identify and communicate the concerns and needs of corporate meetings executives to industry at large. Meetings for Success has Board level company directors – the leaders, strategists and budget-holders – firmly in its sights. We will announce further plans for this initiative within the next month. It will include a series of “head to head” webinars as well as a live Forum in Frankfurt next May.
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Ray Bloom, Chairman, IMEX |
Despite a challenging economic backdrop, this year’s Frankfurt show proved our commitment to delivering new business to our exhibitors. That remains our sole focus for IMEX 2010 in Frankfurt and for IMEX America in 2011 and beyond.
Meetings for Success roll out
16 senior corporate buyers gathered for the first ever Meetings for Success Forum during the show this year and IMEX is delighted that feedback has been extremely positive. The result is that a broader programme has now been confirmed and will be rolled out in the coming months.
Meetings for Success was devised by IMEX, in partnership with JMIC (Joint Meetings Industry Council), as a way to communicate the value and importance of meetings, events and incentive travel programmes to corporate stakeholders - those in corporate boardrooms who hold the budgets, provide leadership and decide long-term strategy.
“an effective tool for helping to achieve corporate objectives”
The Forum’s aim is to show that meetings and events are not simply a cost, but an effective tool for helping to achieve corporate objectives and positively impact the bottom line. The new Forum also complements the lobbying and industry development work already being undertaken by IMEX and JMIC through the Politicians Forum and new educational initiative, Meetings Under the Microscope.
As well as running live Forums in the future, IMEX will also launch a series of quarterly webinars – Corporate Meetings: Head to Head - designed to compare sentiment, meetings activity and strategy successes between contrasting industry sectors. These will be facilitated by David Kliman, former international Chairman of MPI and recent delegate at the White House Conference on Travel and Tourism. Webinars will be free to attend and open to all but primarily aimed at corporate buyers who want to learn how their peers are succeeding in the challenge to win favour from the Board. However, they will also offer topical learning and insight to suppliers, planners, associations and agencies.
The first webinar takes place on 5 November 2009. A full report of the findings of the first Meetings for Success Forum is available for download at:
www.imex-frankfurt.com/meetingsforsuccess.html.
Think big – start small – scale quickly
The objective of the new IMEX Meetings for Success initiative is to help company executives better understand the value that meetings and events bring to their businesses.
The Forum at the 09 show concluded that convincing senior executives of the value of meetings comes down to the ability to demonstrate and actually measure results.
“Have a clear vision on what successful measurement looks like before making time and financial investments. Our advice is “Think big – start small – scale quickly”.
Dev Sharma, Director Global Accounts, MCI
Didier Scaillet, Chief Development Officer, MPI reported that, “Companies that measure the impact of their events are three times more likely to expect increases in their events marketing budgets than those that do not measure.” Agreeing with this sentiment, Dev Sharma, Director Global Accounts, MCI says, “We have seen concrete cases where clients equipped with good business cases and ROI figures have received higher budgets for their activities.”
Bridge to corporate boardrooms
Rod Cameron, President, Criterion Communications, believes that we must communicate the benefits of meetings and events not only in terms of the monetary benefits but also the intangible benefits: “One of the biggest issues facing the meetings industry today is the need to be able to demonstrate value, not just in terms of traditional delegate and organiser spending but of the actual meetings outcomes themselves – the reasons those meetings are held in the first place. This is particularly important in a corporate context as meetings are only one of a number of mechanisms by which corporations address their objectives and must be weighed against alternative strategies.”
“meetings need the highest possible level of credibility in the corporate environment”
He champions Meetings for Success as a valuable tool for moving forward with these objectives, saying, “Meetings for Success could be a highly effective vehicle for helping accomplish this as it represents a bridge between industry organisations and suppliers and the corporate boardrooms where decisions on such strategy alternatives are made. Meetings, exhibitions and other business events, along with those who manage them, need the highest possible level of credibility in the corporate environment, and an effective means of calculating their ROI would help achieve this by providing solid measures that can be weighed against competing tactics.”
ROI and ROO
Asked to comment on the corporate approach to meetings Miranda Ioannou, Managing Director, SCS Limited replied, “The biggest challenge that our new corporate clients have is really understanding the extent of the impact meetings have on their business. One way or another everyone is now accountable for what they are doing. Some of our corporate clients do not have the budget allocations they used to have pre-autumn 2008 and in that respect we have come up with a number of creative ways to help them achieve what they need to achieve for their meetings within the constraints they have. When they do decide to spend money, however restrained their budget is, that money should be spent well and be worth it.”
“transparency, collaboration, creativity, timeliness and relevance are the keys to success”
Ioannou went on the make suggestions for best practice and effective measurement methods, “(Corporates should) be lean and utilise to the fullest possible extent the best of each of their departments in a coordinated manner so as to achieve the results sought. This usually involves firm decisions and support from the top and great flexibility and execution at all other levels. Setting ROI and ROO (return on objectives) targets at the planning stage is the toughest and most tricky part. Once that part is done right, everyone has to be on the same page at all times. Transparency, collaboration, creativity, timeliness, and relevance are the keys to the success of a meeting. Regular reporting, use of online tools and appropriate before-during-after assessment are effective ways to demonstrate the success of a meeting.”
Commenting on the values of trust and transparency as huge reputation and performance issues Ioannou had this to say, “Trust and transparency are great enablers for our business and without them sooner or later companies either lose business or fail to secure new business – or both. Other changes we have seen are the urgency with which client issues and requests are being handled, being candid and being able to help the client plan so well so as to align their business with their meeting/event objectives, not just ROI.”
What successful measurement looks like
Dev Sharma, Director Global Accounts, MCI admits that whilst the large majority of his clients are interested in discussing how their meetings and events could be more effective, only a small minority have formal measurement systems in place.
“A few years ago, I overheard a group passionately discussing ROI at a hotel bar. One of them declared the true measure of a successful meeting was the mood of the CEO’s spouse after the meeting! We’ve obviously come quite a way since then but there’s still a long road ahead,” he says. “The more our clients can prove tangible ROI, the less their budgets are at risk of being slashed or eliminated. We’ve seen concrete cases where clients equipped with good business cases and ROI figures have received higher budgets for their activities. The rationale being, “…if these activities are having a positive impact on our business, we want to be doing more of them.’”
“measuring too much can lead to information overload which hinders decision”
His advice? “The most difficult step is specifying exactly what information should be collected. The ‘right data’ differs from company to company so it’s important to have a clear vision of what successful measurement looks like before making time and financial investments.”
Sharma also stresses the importance of not falling into the trap of exhaustive reporting, “Measuring and reporting too much can lead to information overload which hinders, rather than enables, decisions. The best balance is struck when the ‘right data’ consists of both qualitative and quantitative measures. And, as measurement is more about a form of consulting, it’s also important to have the right partner involved to extract the true meaning from your data.
Sharma sees some interesting trends ahead, including measurement moving from a predominately single event action to cover entire meetings and events portfolios. He also anticipates specific standards emerging for big budget events and measurement becoming professionalised through the use of specialist companies. Watch out too for the emergence of the ‘mystery attendee’ (like a mystery shopper) who will report the uncensored client experience direct to top management.
The right time is now
There has never been a more important time in our industry to win the attention of government. In the depths of a global recession, with the first signs of recovery causing governments to re-think their economic priorities and roles in incentive funding, every industry sector will be assessed on the role they can play in future economic growth.
This is particularly important for convention centres. The simple fact is something over 70% of centres worldwide are effectively government-owned and the decisions they make about ongoing investment and promotional support will have a huge impact on how competitive any given centre will be in today's increasingly competitive market. That's why AIPC (International Association of Congress Centres) is such a big supporter of the IMEX Politicians Forum, and will continue to invest its energy in supporting this key event.
“every industry sector will be assessed on the role they can play in future economic growth”
We don't, as an industry, get many opportunities to talk directly with our politicians in an atmosphere where they can clearly see the scale and importance of the industry on a global level. They, in turn, seldom get a chance to exchange views with industry leaders and compare notes with other officials in the same position as they are. The Politicians Forum delivers both - and does so in a way that enables government representatives to better understand the broad role a centre and the kinds of events it hosts can play in the overall economy.
This year, AIPC will be redoubling its efforts to encourage government owners to attend the Forum in the company of their respective centre managers. In our view, this is one of the best investments we can make in building a better understanding of the industry and, particularly, the role a centre plays in the local community and the local economy. We want to encourage others to do the same – because the broader the audience, the more likely we will be to get our messages across about how meetings support economic growth.
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Edgar Hirt, President, AIPC and Managing Director, Congress Center Hamburg www.aipc.org |
Make a date with Expo!
“Destination Expo! Expo!” is not only the theme for IAEE’s Annual Meeting & Exhibition 2009 but also the destination for cutting-edge learning and networking opportunities on behalf of IAEE. This year’s event will be held 8-10 December 2009 in Atlanta USA.
“making the most of today’s fast and free online tools”
The Wednesday morning session will feature a presentation on ‘The Art of Social Media Marketing’. Social media experts, Guy Kawasaki and Chris Brogan will offer attendees an overview of the best way to make the most of today’s fast, free, and ubiquitous online tools.
Designed specifically for exhibition and event marketing professionals, the ‘TS2 Winter’ One Day education track is set to provide the opportunity to gain knowledge in event marketing, developing ROI and making the most of a difficult economy.
Cutting-edge technologies will also be used to help attendees get the most from Expo! Expo! Social Collective is hosted, web-based social networking software for conferences. Taptopia, Inc. is an Apple iPhone application that enables attendees and exhibitors to navigate schedules, exhibitor lists and the exhibition; whilst XNiP is a service designed to collect and organise information for all media channels.
DMAI goes to Glasgow
How better to face difficult times than by showing meeting industry partners the value of staff training and best practice exchanges with peers?
Building more effective organisations translates into better meetings, and greater success for meeting professionals, destinations, and venues. This is the motto that Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI) has continued to advocate worldwide since its creation in 1914. DMAI offers unique educational and networking opportunities as well as accreditation and certification programmes on the American continent and also in Europe where activity have risen significantly since the opening of its Brussels based European office in 2007.
This year DMAI’s Leadership Forum will take place in Glasgow from 14 to 16 October 2009. The interactive meeting will bring together CEOs, presidents, and executive/managing directors of convention bureaus and tourism boards from all over Europe. They will discuss and exchange strategic views and ideas on the challenges affecting the destination marketing industry in Europe as well as sharing best practices and proven solutions for attracting new business.
The Forum will also feature a new workshop about the European Policy Environment which will address those EU regulations that influence the destination marketing industry. Other topics will include “Coping in Recessionary Times”; “Leveraging Limited Marketing Budget”; “Educating Politicians" and “Talking Heads”.
Beijing conference draws top industry names
Aviation industry leaders addressing the PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) - endorsed Aviation Outlook Asia conference in Beijing this October include Cathay Pacific chief Tony Tyler; Air Asia X CEO Azran Osman Rani and Dong Zhiyi, CEO of Beijing Capital International Airport.
The conference will cover a broad range of industry issues including e-commerce, revenue management, operations, distribution and IT. PATA Premier Partner Amadeus is a major sponsor and the company’s Regional Director – Airline IT John Chapman - is set to join airline executives on a panel discussion. PATA Director – Corporate Communications Dale Lawrence - will be this year’s conference chair.
Elsewhere in the region, the keynote speaker at TIDES Samoa 2009 will be Anna Pollock, Chief Executive Officer of Desticorp UK. Chris Flynn, PATA Regional Director – Pacific explains the events objectives, “TIDES aims to raise awareness of the region’s investment potential, allow attendees to develop or strengthen international partnership opportunities, and to engage stakeholders in unique dialogue concerning critical aspects of future tourism in the region.”
CIC announces additional international CMP exam dates
The Convention Industry Council (CIC) has announced additional Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) exam dates and locations in 2010 outside North America. They will also take place as part of a Global CMP Exam Day on Saturday, February 20, 2010. As a result, new exam locations will include Cancun, Mexico (in conjunction with MPI’s Meet Different), South Korea, Singapore, South Africa, and Italy.
“The demand for the CMP designation from the global meetings community has been overwhelming, and it is our goal to provide as many opportunities as possible to meet this demand,” says Karen Kotowski, CAE, CMP, Chief Operating Officer for the CIC.
“February 20 designated Global CMP Exam Day”
She adds, “To show our commitment to global expansion, CIC has designated a separate day, February 20, as the Global CMP Exam Day, with the addition of these five exam sites. We hope this will be the first of many more exam locations world-wide.”
CIC actively participates in IMEX by offering an exam location as well as sponsoring the Professional Development and Innovation Pavilion. Since this partnership began in 2004, over 90 candidates have taken the exam at IMEX.
“IMEX continues to be a great partner, and plans are well underway to once again host an exam and have a CIC presence in the Professional Development and Innovation Pavilion,” says Kotowski. “The IMEX show has been a great venue for us to promote the CMP Program.”
Positive response to Politicians Forum
Attended by 25 politicians and civic leaders from 11 European countries and over 50 worldwide meetings industry representatives, the aim of the 2009 IMEX Politicians Forum was to discuss the role meetings play in stimulating economic recovery and how to tackle negative public perception of meetings and events.
Feedback from participants has been overwhelmingly positive with a post-forum survey showing that 100% of respondents believe that the event achieved its objective of informing delegates of the value of developing a strong and productive relationship between politicians and the meetings industry, especially in times of economic downturn.
“any politician involved in the meetings industry should consider the Politicians Forum a must”
“The Politicians Forum is a very good platform to exchange information on trends in the meetings industry and economic developments in the different countries. It should be "the place to be" for politicians 
every year!” commented Heike Mahmoud, Director Conventions, Berlin Convention Office. Remy Cregut, CEO, Montreux Music & Convention Centre added “Any politician involved in the meetings industry should consider the Politicians Forum a must.”
The eighth IMEX Politicians Forum co-organised by ECM (European Cities Marketing) and AIPC (International Association of Congress Centres) and held under the auspices of JMIC (Joint Meetings Industry Council) will take place in Frankfurt 25 May 2010.
To view reports from the 2009 Forum, case studies, and a programme overview, plus details of how to get involved in 2010 go to www.imex-frankfurt.com/politforum.html.
Leading the way from Iceland to Serbia
The next IMEX-MPI Future Leaders Forum at BTC on 6 November 2009 in Rome follows a series of successful Forums over the last four months in the USA, Iceland, Serbia and Thailand. Iceland and Serbia are both new to the programme which has taken in 17 countries and over 3,000 students since its launch in 2003.
The Future Leaders programme includes an annual three month internship in Malaysia with AOS Conventions & Events offered to two European graduates of the Future Leaders Forum at IMEX. Magdalina Yarichkov from Minoan International College began her internship in August and sent in this report “When I heard I was one of the selected students I was so excited! I had researched AOS previously and feel honoured to be able to work for them. Now I am here I cannot wait to get up in the morning to go to the office and see what exciting tasks are waiting for me! Tomorrow I am due to take a day trip to Malacca - I am sure that three adventurous months lie ahead!”
The Future Leaders Forum at WEC in Salt Lake City in July hosted the first round of the IMEX-MPI International University Challenge 2010, won by Renea Anderson from the University of Central Florida. Renea will attend the final of the University Challenge at the Future Leaders Forum at IMEX in Frankfurt next year along with finalists from Forums in Thailand, Poland and Malaga.
Reporting back after winning the previous University Challenge, Miguel Neves from the University of Westminster commented, “The highlight of the Forum is all the industry professionals who give their time to explain their perspective of the industry and show us all the different options and careers open to us – such as how to run a business and what the future trends may be. That’s really important and very valuable for young people coming into the industry.”
www.imex-frankfurt.com/aboutfutureleadersforum.html
Are you walking the talk?
In the past year our colleagues in North America have been forced to defend the notion that face to face meetings and motivational events are beneficial. As shocking as this was, we learned we must not forget the core purpose of why we do what we do. Motivational events inspire top performers to strive for great results. And we all know when employees are engaged the company makes greater profits. In a time when our partners are on the verge of making motivational events a commodity (by focusing on cost versus value), we need to hold true to our value proposition.
“we must not only attend industry events but we must attend with a specific mission”
Face to face experiences bring a human connection that cannot be replicated through any other means. And the business value is always relevant. Look at the energy at IMEX this year - at the Site stand we still had delegates visiting even after the show had ended for the day.
So what does this mean? We are in the business of telling others to value meetings and motivational events using the phrase "Meetings Mean Business." We need to embrace that philosophy on a personal level. We must not only attend industry events but we must attend them with a specific mission. A simple way to set up ROI metrics for
yourself is by setting out to do three things: learn about three companies that are in the
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Brenda Anderson, CEO, Site www.siteglobal.com |
same space as you - observe their marketing tactics and engage in conversation with them on how they are changing how they go to market; seek out three industry leaders that you have never met but that you would like to be connected to; select three people from everyone you meet and follow up to inspire creativity, push your thinking, and expand your network. If we can't walk the talk, who can?
ICCA focuses on personal ROI
Between 7 and 11 November this year some 900 to 1,000 senior executives from the meetings industry representing companies and organisations based in 70 countries are expected to converge on Florence for the 2009 ICCA Congress.
“ICCA has created a unique Personal ROI Handbook”
This is definitely going to be our largest ever meeting. It will bring with it some new challenges. Ultimately we're not in a numbers game, and the volume attending isn't a goal in itself; instead our key objective is to help each and every delegate generate the strongest possible return on investment from the money they pay out to attend, and the time spent away from their desks.
ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) has created a unique "Personal ROI Handbook" specifically to help delegates achieve a good return, and is also continuing to invest in the Spotme handheld networking device to help delegates locate key contacts and exchange data on valuable business leads.
Our analysis shows that individual delegate objectives can vary enormously; at the same time there is typically little understanding of the objectives of others. Our new Handbook helps delegates to think more widely about all the value they
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Martin Sirk, CEO, ICCA www.iccaworld.com |
can potentially extract from their time in Florence, including areas they hadn't previously considered. One very useful way of thinking about the congress is that rather than organising a single event for 1,000 people, we're actually creating an environment and providing the tools to enable 1,000 individual congresses to take place simultaneously inside the heads of the delegates!
Business platform with great potential
The tmf newsletter forum has reached a new stage in its development. From autumn 2009, destination management companies, hotels and event locations will have the opportunity to present themselves to the German-speaking planners’ community.
The forum, already well-established in German-speaking planners’ circles, will become more interactive thanks to a new feature offering event and corporate planners the chance to recommend international MICE suppliers and to exchange experiences, acknowledging that often nothing is more helpful than a tip from a colleague.
In turn, event locations, hotels and destination management companies can register and create a profile, introducing their services to the planner community. Event planners looking for a specific service abroad can find relevant information on various international suppliers at a glance via the forum. The primary benefit of registration for DMCs, hotels and event locations is the chance to inform the important German-speaking outbound MICE market about their services.
The tmf newsletter forum was launched in August 2008. Conceived as an information service, it carries all current and archived newsletters of various international destinations online. By providing this service, tmf GmbH aims to facilitate faster and easier daily work flow for planners.
International suppliers interested in registering should contact tmf Managing Director, Johanna Fischer, at office@tmf-gmbh.de
Rewarding the greenest
Applications will open in December for the prestigious IMEX Green Awards, jointly run with GMIC (Green Meeting Industry Council). Developed to recognise organisations within the meetings and incentive travel industry that are making an effort to minimise their environmental and social impacts, the Green Awards have become some of the industry’s most significant and sought after accolades.
The four categories are:
Commitment to the Community: Nominations are welcome from anyone involved in meetings, incentive programmes, conferences, associations or business projects which took place in 2008 or 2009 that demonstrate innovative efforts to benefit a charitable initiative.
Green Meetings: Recognises environmental awareness amongst meeting organisers, highlighting the opportunities that now 
exist to stage events in 'green-minded' venues, whilst also planning an agenda in which sustainability issues have been taken fully into account.
Green Exhibitor: The award recognises those making significant steps to exhibit in a more sustainable manner both generally and specifically at IMEX.
Green Supplier: For meeting suppliers (e.g. hotels, convention centres, CVBs etc.) that have made innovative efforts to reduce the environmental impact of their operations through planning, implementation and evaluation.
“The IMEX Award process has allowed us to review our credentials as a green supplier, benchmarking our standards against the world’s best.” Alec Gilbert, CEO, Adelaide Convention Centre
www.imex-frankfurt.com/theawards.html
Wild Card call for entries
Now in its 8th year, the Wild Card programme continues to provide a unique opportunity for new meetings and incentive travel destinations as well as new convention centres in these destinations to introduce themselves to the global meetings industry. "A great opportunity to showcase our destination - we will certainly be back next year!" commented Hans Loontiens, a 2009 Wild Card exhibitor with the Renaissance Tianjin Hotel & Convention Centre.
Applications are now open for the 2010 Wild Card programme. To qualify new destinations and convention centres are not permitted to have exhibited at a major meetings or incentive travel trade fair before – and they have to demonstrate that they have the commitment and capacity to handle new business with the infrastructure to support the demands of the meetings and incentive travel market.
The programme includes exhibition space, accommodation, access to discounted air fares, year-round marketing and PR support and an invitation to the IMEX Gala Dinner.
Application forms are available here www.imex-frankfurt.com/wildcard.html with a closing deadline of 13 November 2009.
Delivering relevant content
For 2010 the new IMEX initiative, Meetings Under the Microscope is set to grow in terms of both educational content and industry clout. The initiative aims to help meeting planners deliver relevant and top class meeting content whilst increasing ROI.
“the need for meetings to justify their existence and prove exceptional ROI has never been greater”
Jon Bradshaw, founder of Equinox Motivation and IMEX Business Development Director, sums up what can be expected in 2010, “Meeting and event planners produce experiences rather than tangible products, therefore, the way in which planners choose to deliver content influences the effectiveness of the meeting dramatically. The very best meetings are created by planners who deliver relevant content whilst catering for the variety of learning and communication preferences within the audience, issues surrounding the emotional state of the audience as well as the environment in which the meetings take place.”
“The need for meetings to justify their existence and prove exceptional ROI has never been greater. This need has led to planners being more open minded and creative in their planning process and therefore keen to embrace and experiment with different facets of the meeting experience.”
“The Meetings Under the Microscope initiative at IMEX 2010 will build on the excellent content delivered this year. New ideas, new concepts, new thinking and new speakers will all come together to create another excellent educational opportunity.”
For the complete Meetings Under the Microscope Electronic Toolkit, containing IMEX researched advice, articles, case studies, flyers and suppliers, go to www.imex-frankfurt.com/meetings_under_the_microscope.html
Standing room only for Professional Development and Innovation
The 2009 Professional Development and Innovation Pavilion at IMEX showcased 12 of the best industry innovators who presented on a number of topics from facilitation to personality assessment.
Speaker Tyra W. Hilliard, Consultant & Educator, Hilliard Associates gave her impressions of the Pavilion, “At times the room was packed so full, it was standing room only. Excellent speakers offered topics that were right on target with issues that people are addressing right now. I lurked by the doorway myself during a couple of the presentations as I knew I could learn something from the experienced folks who were offering to share their experience and knowledge. It was wonderful to have short “nuggets” of information that participants could gather on just a short break from the show floor.”
Tyra presented the ever popular Women’s Forum with sessions including ‘How to present yourself both in interviews and on the job’, ‘What's gender got to do with it?’ and ‘How to hire and retain an effective team’. “Employers are looking for ways to hire and retain the best possible workers and employees are looking for work that allows them the work-life balance that has eluded some of us “older” workers...until now. The meetings and exhibitions industry is ideal for flexible work environments because as we all know, we’re on the road more often than not in some cases.”
www.imex-frankfurt.com/pdp.html
Bottom line impact
Didier Scaillet, MPI (Meeting Professionals International) Chief Development Officer argues the case for the value of meetings and events as a business tool.
Over recent months the world of meetings has come under increased scrutiny as companies look to justify the purpose and return on investment (ROI) of meetings, incentives, conferences and events.
For those who may be questioning the value of meetings as a business tool I would direct them to the EventView 2009 research, the largest international and longest-running annual survey of corporate sales and marketing directors and executives. Produced through collaboration between the MPI Foundation, the Event Marketing Institute (EMI) and George P. Johnson (GPJ), more than 1,000 senior marketing executives in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific were surveyed with the aim of illuminating the value and role of events in the marketing mix.
“event marketing is the discipline that provides the greatest ROI”
Results show that 30% of respondents globally choose event marketing as the marketing discipline that provides the greatest ROI. This is followed by web marketing at 21%.
The findings, more than ever, show that meetings continue to be a powerful marketing tool that can directly impact on the business bottom line, providing a great opportunity to effect change and harness intellectual capital. The fact that 52% of the marketing and sales executives interviewed chose event marketing as the discipline that best accelerates and deepens relationships, demonstrates its true value.
“no replacement for the dynamics of face-to-face contact”
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Didier Scaillet, Chief Development Officer, MPI www.mpiweb.org |
One could argue that in 20 years’ time the virtual world will play a major role in the meetings industry. However, there is no
replacement for the dynamics of face-to-face contact, which is ultimately the lifeblood of the meetings industry and a powerful competitive weapon.
Get it right first time
As part of their meetings industry guidelines, IAPCO have compiled a dedicated Request for Proposal for PCOs. The RfP covers both national and international meetings and is available in 12 languages, all accessible from the IAPCO website. The template can easily be adapted to suit the needs of individual clients and is intended to reduce time wasted on inaccurate or ill-prepared proposals. By establishing accurate data from the outset, IAPCO say that each party’s time can be used more effectively and that this should lead to a more profitable bottom line for everyone involved.
Association meetings sector shows resilience
A survey carried out by ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) and IMEX amongst this year's IMEX Association Day attendees delivers positive news for all suppliers targeting this market segment.
Results showed that a clear majority of their 2009 conventions and congresses reported or anticipated increased or static delegate attendances, with an only slightly less optimistic viewpoint on sponsorship and exhibition revenue. Associations are planning to retain their large and small meeting programmes (and no 2009 event cancellations were reported), but it's clear that they are getting tougher: far more are planning to select better value destinations, to renegotiate existing contracts with venues and accommodation providers, and they are looking for budget cuts in all operational areas.
“meetings a critical part of their organisations’ strategies”
ICCA CEO Martin Sirk commented: "We've consistently claimed that international association meetings are the most resilient and recession-proof sector in our industry, and these results provide great evidence to support this view. They're certainly not immune from the downturn, with 70% indicating that they had suffered some negative impact, but the detailed positive results demonstrate the sense of including international associations in any long-term strategic business mix."
IMEX Marketing Director Carina Bauer added: "This year's Association Day was the most successful ever in terms of attendance, and this survey helps to explain why that was so. International associations regard their meetings as an absolutely critical part of their organisations' strategies, and it's clear they're going to continue to invest strongly in meetings, which is good news for all of us."
The 2010 Association Day will be held on 24 May 2010. See www.imex-frankfurt.com/assc-day.html for details.
Briefing interview
Briefing catches up with Roger Dow, President and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, the national umbrella organisation representing all segments of the $770 billion US travel and tourism industry.
Briefing: Your leadership achievements have been widely recognised and celebrated through many industry awards. What is the secret of good leadership?
Roger: Good leadership requires a clear vision, enthusiasm and energy, and a willingness to allow your team to have input into the process. My experience is that people want to succeed and that usually means helping their leader succeed. They can do that most effectively if the objectives are communicated clearly. It helps to encourage energy and enthusiasm because momentum gets generated with focused activity. But equally important is the ability to listen. Strong leaders all bring a point of view. But no one of us has all the answers. Surrounding yourself with good people who bring their own valuable perspectives is critical to accomplishing any important objective.
“travel contributes significantly to our economy”
Briefing: The last two years have been an unsettling time for the business travel and meetings industry. What has surprised or struck you most during this period of change?
Roger: The past couple of years, and especially the last year, have been especially challenging for the travel industry. Our industry has been through recessions in the past, and we have coped by tightening our belts and being creative. We can get through a recession. What we have not seen before is the government and media discouraging people from travelling. The compounding of the economic recession and the rampant government and media criticism of business travel as excessive has really hurt the travel economy and the 7 million jobs it generates in the United States.
Briefing: The U.S. Travel Association has been widely involved in the Meetings Means Business campaign. Where does the lobbying effort go from here? What are the current challenges?
Roger: The U.S. Travel Association and our partners launched the Meetings Mean Business campaign back in March in order to respond to the attacks by the media and government on business meeting and event trips. Our lobbying efforts have helped to fend off any legislation that would harm travel. The next important step for our industry is to make a better case for the value of travel to businesses. We also have to help policymakers understand that at this fork in the road of our economic recovery, hindering business travel in any way would be extremely counterproductive. I think we have made a lot of progress, but we still have our work cut out for us as we move the perceptions of travel from the “frivolous” or unnecessary activity to the understanding that business and leisure travel contribute significantly to our economy, American jobs and our country’s productivity.
“the more complex the transaction the more trust is important”
Briefing: You’ve spent your entire career in the hospitality sector. IMEX and MPI’s global Future Leaders Forums are designed to inspire young people to enter this industry. How would you “sell” its benefits to the next generation?
Roger: What is unique about the travel and hospitality industry is the ability for a person like me to start in an entry level position, learn and work their way up to management and leadership roles. I began as a lifeguard for Marriott during college and worked my way through various roles and positions with the company until I became the head of global sales and marketing. Now I am the President and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association. My story is not extraordinary – this industry provides opportunities and opens doors for everyone. Just look at our new Face of Travel, Paco Saldana. Paco came to the United States from Mexico 13 years ago with a high school education and not speaking any English. He went to work for the Ritz Carlton as a bus boy. Today he is the Director of Guest Services for their hotel on Amelia Island, Florida, and he is an example of the American dream. What other industry offers such a breadth of opportunity and potential for hardworking people of all educational and ethnic backgrounds? This industry is exceptional, and it provides terrific opportunities for those who seek a bright future.
Briefing: Corporate trust is one of the many elements that have been eroded during the recession. Having written a book on the subject, what lessons do companies in this industry still need to learn?
Roger: Trust is one of the most important ingredients in business. It can take decades to earn and minutes to lose. Once you breach that trust with constituents it’s very difficult to grow together in the future. The more complex the transaction, the more trust is important. You don’t have to have great trust in an organisation to buy a candy bar, but when you’re spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on critical meeting or incentive programmes, you only want to do business with those who have earned your trust.
IMEX shortlisted for UFI award
Several of the ‘added value’ offerings we introduced last year were so successful, and we received such positive feedback, that we will be taking them further this year. IMEX will be providing more online training webinars as well as face-to-face ‘road shows’ for exhibitors to help them get the very best out of their marketing efforts leading up to and during the show. Obviously each year we aim to improve our approach and also exhibitors’ return on time and investment. That means that fresh ideas, techniques and services keep coming. However, this brings its own challenges in terms of learning and we know the best way to demonstrate the full business potential of all of these exciting new tools is through exhibitor education plus regular communication, questions and answers.
“allowing buyers to target exhibitors more accurately”
Some of the changes we will be introducing for next year’s show include improvements to what is perhaps the most powerful marketing tool, the Contact IMEX Buyers facility. We are also revising the search function on the IMEX Virtual Exhibition to allow buyers to save searches and conduct multiple criteria searches, giving them much more flexibility and allowing them to target exhibitors more accurately. It is really satisfying to see that our efforts to continuously improve the IMEX experience online has resulted in us being one of just four shortlisted for the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, UFI’s “Best Innovative Web Application 2009.”
With all of these gains in mind, the exhibitor marketing USB sticks will be delivered in the next few weeks. These will include brochure PDFs, stand co-ordinator and stand partner checklists plus logos, banner ads and video, amongst other useful items.
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Heather Gough, Sales Director, IMEX |
We will also be providing the IMEX sales brochures online for the first time for ultimate convenience and easy reference.
Looking further ahead, nominations for the IMEX Green Awards go live in December and applications for a free place on the Wild Card Pavilion are also now open.
More buyers to stay longer
A key focus for 2010, amongst others, is ensuring that more buyers attend IMEX for longer. As the show gets bigger our aim is to extend the time that buyers spend with exhibitors on the show floor and doing the maximum amount of business. We’ve already made great headway for next year and more buyers will be attending for a minimum of two days than ever before. We’re now working with a total of 24 hotels in Frankfurt, having brought more into our schedule since last year. We also expect to book more than 5,700 room nights during the week of IMEX, a figure which has risen dramatically – for all the right reasons - since year one.
“encouraging more senior buyer groups to hold their meetings at the show”
Since the beginning we’ve always encouraged buyers and intermediaries to see IMEX as a ‘hub’ around which annual meetings, forums and other activity could profitably take place. IMEX really has become a linchpin in the industry calendar and we continue to concentrate efforts on encouraging more senior buyer groups to hold their most important internal meetings or workshops shortly before or after the show.
The popularity of the Frankfurt region fam trips will see them return this year with a pre-show fam trip to allow long-haul buyers to see Frankfurt and the picturesque Rhein Main region at a more leisurely pace. For those set on exploring Frankfurt’s
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Nikki Williams, Director of Hosted Buyer Programmes, IMEX |
growing retail reputation, we are planning an afternoon shopping trip after the last day of the show.
Lastly, I’m delighted to welcome Sylvia Taylor back to the hosted team who recently took a break to have twins. Sylvia rejoins the team in the new role of Hotel Planning Manager.
PCMA convening leaders in Dallas
Our goal for the PCMA Annual Meeting in Dallas, January 10-13 is to provide relevant, valuable education with a focus on ‘need to know’ and not ‘nice to know’ information. One of the ways we are providing that is through sessions on the state of the industry with the CEO of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Fritz van Paasschen; Federal Express’ Fred Smith; Host Hotels & Resorts’ Minaz Abji; Tom Dolan of the American College of Healthcare Executives; American Airlines’ Gerard Arpey; and Southwest Airlines’ Gary Kelly.
To help focus our attendees on leadership, success, and global vision, we will feature sessions with Malcolm Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point, Blink, and Outliers: The Story of Success; Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® and recent Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient; and Kjell Nordstrom, author and world-renowned researcher/consultant in corporate strategy and globalisation.
Savings for the 3,000 plus meetings industry professionals at Convening Leaders include a
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Deborah Sexton, President and |
payment plan; bulk registrations; lower registration fees, 10% off non-refundable housing and using Starwood Points for registration and housing. See www.pcma2010.org for more information.
GCB launches CO2 Meetings Calculator
With climate change being one of the greatest challenges of our times, the GCB German Convention Bureau together with solutions provider for climate-friendly meetings and events, CO2OL, has launched a calculator that measures the carbon footprint of conventions, meetings and events.
A free link to the CO2 Calculator is available on the GCB’s website - www.germany-meetings.com.
Apart from calculating carbon footprints, CO2OL offers detailed advice on how to reduce CO2 emissions. Unavoidable remaining emissions can be offset by certified climate protection projects in order to make events “climate-neutral”.
“new task force to formulate green guidelines for the meetings industry in Germany”
At the same time, a new task force has been established to formulate new green guidelines for the meetings industry in Germany. ‘Green Meetings & Events’ was initiated by the WorldCCBonn after the first GreenMeetings Germany symposium. EVVC (the European Association of Conference Centres) will be responsible for implementation, working with the GCB and aided by the Centre for Environmental Communication and the German Environment Foundation as well as other independent experts.
The demand for more and better green meetings information is supported by the results of the latest Meeting and EventBarometer 2009. 15 per cent of organisers say they are "definitely" influenced by climate protection concerns when choosing a venue for their meeting or event and over half of all companies, associations and agencies would recommend climate protection projects.
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Lutz P. Vogt, Managing Director,
GCB |
The survey also indicates how experts rate the subject of green meetings. 55 per cent confirm they are becoming increasingly important, and 15 per cent believe that Germany's high standards in this field are a key image factor and selling point.
A summer of education
On the round of summer association conferences, from Atlanta to Toronto, from Tokyo to Cairns to Reykjavik, there was one hot topic. All attendees wanted to hear about how the effect of financial downturn on our sector was to be overcome …and when!
“the resolve and professionalism of the sector shines through”
There was much optimism as well as a number of solutions from a variety of speakers. For me the highlight was at the PCMA (Professional Convention Management Association) event in Toronto when Robin Lokerman, President, MCI Singapore, delivered a very factual account of where the sector is going, why and how. The MCI guru was in fine form & his unique style blended well with his approach to group discussions.
In times like these I have always relied on proven leaders to offer sound opinions and sage advice. Their experience and longevity always wins through. An example that readily springs to mind is former Site President Jane Schuldt, who always commands respect and speaks to appreciative audiences. Overall it would seem that there are good signs of a recovery but perhaps not as rapid as we all would want. However the strength and professionalism of the sector shines through with even the newer destinations showing resolve and a determination to succeed whatever.
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Paul Flackett, Managing Director, IMEX |
For me these situations always work best when active group discussions open up different situations and different solutions. Perhaps a little less ‘expertise’ and more delegate discussions are the answer, sharing experiences on what is working and what is not working. One thing is for sure, our industry is still alive and doing well. Long may it last!
