When Events Industry Council (EIC) and Oxford Economics set out to evaluate the full scope and economic significance of the $1.6 trillion global business events industry after the massive disruption caused by Covid-19, they uncovered more than what many were expecting. Beyond better understanding pre-pandemic benchmarks and 2020 losses, the 2023 Global Economic Significance of Business Events study quantified the important “catalytic” effects or wide-reaching benefits of business events.
For the first time, EIC measured the critical role business events serve in areas like knowledge sharing, innovation and employee engagement—important impacts that go well beyond direct event spending.
The reality is that face-to-face interaction plays a critical role in relationship building, establishing culture and engagement and spreading understanding. Events are a catalyst for meaningful change. Across industry sectors, organizations and individuals all gain in ways that are fundamental to advancement, innovation and adaptation to a changing world. The study of business events that involved 1.6 billion participants across more than 180 countries covered $1.15 trillion in direct spending and supported 10.9 million direct jobs.
Long-term Outlook (% or survey respondents)
41%—Agree events will be increasingly important in building culture and engagement
36%—Agree events will be used to advance growth of individual employees
Event Results Most Difficult to Replace (% of survey respondents)
67%—View building relationships through face-to-face interaction as most difficult to replace
23%—View worker collaboration and business development difficult to replace
Typical ROI From Hosting Events
44%—Revenue that would be lost without hosting
in-person events
37%—Marketing and sales expense reduction from hosting in-person events
38%—New leads generated on average per event (exhibitors)
The Results
In 2019, the global business events sector:
• Directly generated more output (business sales) than many large global sectors, including telecommunication equipment and air transport.]
• The $1.62 trillion of total GDP supported by global business events would rank the sector as the 13th largest economy globally.
• Based on its $662.6 billion direct GDP impact, the business events sector would rank as the 21st largest economy globally.
• The $2.8 trillion in total output supported by global business events represents a 9.1% increase relative to 2017.
Catalytic Effects
Catalytic effects refer to the broader impacts that occur as the result of business events, ranging from new business opportunities, knowledge transfers and future sales generated through exhibits at trade shows to innovative research collaborations fostered through medical conferences, new skills learned through training, or career connections made through technology or creative sector conferences. Other examples of catalytic effects include future investment in infrastructure, industry innovation and progress on advanced research.
How to Protect the Room Block
Estimating attendance years in advance, negotiating rates and integrating the hotel reservation information into the registration process can be a feat of Olympic proportions. Then pirates and poachers posing as “official housing companies” try to pick off your attendees, resulting in poor experiences, unpredictable attrition and gray hairs (if you have any left by the time the rooming lists are run). Maritz has some suggestions in their Room Piracy Toolkit for crossing the finish line without pulling a hamstring.
It starts with marketing the benefits of booking in the room block to attendees and making it easy for conventioneers to book with confidence. Consider including the following in the confirmation email:
Lowest Rate Assurance—because you have negotiated everything from shoulder dates to resort fees, they can be sure that the package price is the best around. No Google search required.
Reservation Protection—if the hotel is sold out, those included in the official room block will get preferential treatment when some guests are walked to another property.
Group Benefits—staying with the rest of the group rather than at an Airbnb or some other property will put guests in the middle of the action for mixing with other attendees. Staying with the group will also allow access to perks such as free shuttles and remote registration.
Loyalty—Booking in the official hotel block supports the organization and allows the group to be successful this year and in the future.
This article appears in the November/December 2024 issue. You can subscribe to the magazine here.
