Average spend per meeting in the UK increased in 2018, while lead and conversion times came down year on year, according to the latest HBAA Meetings Barometer. The report, developed by HBAA with The MeetingsBenchmark, also reveals a wide range in the average day delegate rate across the country. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Belfast’s official tourism marketing agency, Visit Belfast, has launched a new marketing campaign designed to rapidly accelerate the volume of inbound business conferences and events taking place in the city. The digital-led campaign is the city’s largest-ever dedicated business tourism marketing initiative. From Association Meetings International…
Edinburgh Marketing, the body behind the city’s convention bureau, has been dealt an eleventh hour reprieve after city councillors accepted a counter offer to proposed cuts. The council had sought to slash the organisation’s funding by £567,000 next year and by 89 percent over two years. Now it has reinstated £267,000. From Association Meetings International…
The revamped 2019 Asia-Pacific Incentives and Meetings Event (AIME) has taken place in Melbourne. In addition to plenary sessions, a mini hackathon and a series of break-out sessions, industry chiefs also attended an invitation-only Leaders Forum, which examined emerging technology and consumer trends in the Asia-Pacific region. From PCMA…
Messe Frankfurt, which claims to be the “world’s largest” event organiser and exhibition ground owner, will source all of its electricity from a renewable energy provider in 2020. This includes power for the stands and halls at the company’s various Frankfurt venues. The exhibition grounds already have three photovoltaic systems. From Association Meetings International…
Leaders from one of Europe’s most prestigious gatherings of destination marketing organisations have voiced disbelief at proposed budget cuts which could see the end of both Marketing Edinburgh and the city’s convention bureau. Partner of the Iceberg European Cities Marketing’s Spring Meeting 2019 has just been held in the Scottish capital. From Association Meetings International…
Manchester Central saw 31 percent growth in exhibition revenue during 2018, thanks to a rise in the total number of shows hosted (37) and a repeat rate of 86 percent from 2017. High-profile new events included The Northern Business Exhibition. Repeat clients included IP EXPO. 2018 also saw investment in new facilities. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
It’s been a busy year for James Rees, Executive Director of ExCeL London. Following election as ICCA President in November 2018, Rees reveals his approach to the US market, to diversity at both ExCeL and ICCA, and how being in a New Romantic pop band helped him thrive in the events industry. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The Annual Meetings Market Survey just added two new questions about whether or not corporate social responsibility and environmental sustainability are usually part of event planning. More than half of respondents did not make CSR part of their event, and the environment was top of mind (in RFPs) for only eleven percent. From PCMA…
The TED Radio Hour just interviewed Yassmin Abdel-Magied, an Australian author, TV personality, and founder of Youth Without Borders. In April 2018 Abdel-Magied traveled to the US to speak at an event, but was denied entry because her country of birth, Sudan, was on President Trump’s original travel ban. From PCMA…
This year marks a milestone for SACEOS, the Singapore Association for Conventions Exhibitions Organisers and Suppliers. It is both celebrating its 40th year, and a new President, industry heavyweight Aloysius Arlando, took over the reigns in February. Here he shares his vision for the future and explains why associations must be “future-ready”. From Boardroom…
While the Edinburgh Convention Bureau’s future funding lies under threat, so the city has also voiced the idea of a £2 per person nightly “room tax”. Some see this as a welcome source of new revenue, but will any get back to marketing, and what about competitiveness? From editor’s blog at Meetings & Incentive Travel…
An Iceberg partner’s first ever mental health survey received responses from event professionals struggling to stay afloat. The results reinforce the much-referenced CareerCast survey from 2017 that ranked event planner as the fifth most stressful job in the world, beaten only by roles in the emergency services and military. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Iceberg partner Boardroom has announced its collaboration on the ambitious but pioneering #MEET4IMPACT Project. Initiated by Caravelle Strategies and its founder Geneviève Leclerc, along with a coalition of partners, #MEET4IMPACT will create a legacy framework and comprehensive process for generating, managing and measuring the positive societal impacts of association conferences. From Boardroom…
Despite its reputation of centuries-old tradition, London is the mover and groover of the technology universe. 80 percent of venture capital invested in UK tech firms since 2016 has gone to the capital. This investment is drawing, indeed being facilitated by, venues and events sharing in the sector’s strength. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Dubai World Trade Centre has secured bids to host ten new global congresses from 2019 to 2022. The high-profile events will bring into Dubai around 37,000 delegates, and include two space congresses set to be hosted by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, the UAE’s hub for space science and research. From Boardroom…
The Defence Procurement, Research, Technology & Exportability arms fair has been moved from the NEC Birmingham to Farnborough International after a protest campaign against the event. The decision to hold it in Birmingham was only made in November, with DPRTE having originally been scheduled for Cardiff before similar objections from local people. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
This year’s edition of Meetings Africa is set to be the greenest ever, with more event greening in place than ever before. Africa’s foremost industry trade fair has pioneered the practice since 2011. The show takes place at the end of February in the International Convention Centre in Sandton, Johannesburg. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The Professional Convention Management Association is expanding education and outreach opportunities throughout Europe in 2019 with sessions in the UK, Spain, Belgium and Switzerland. As well as its annual European Influencers Summit and Knowledge Exchange programme, PCMA will continue collaborating with other major industry associations as education partner. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Olympia London has received planning permission for a £1 billion renovation. The new vision of the 132-year-old exhibition centre is a diverse quarter, with events space, communal areas and leisure facilities. Work will start this year, with the first tenants moving in by 2023, and Olympia will continue to operate during renovation. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The IMEX Group is championing the power of imagination as its talking point for 2019. The theme has been chosen in response to the growth of digitalisation, and the team will be focusing on three core aspects across its events: transformation and collaboration, diversity and inclusion, and sustainability. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
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