INSIGHTS
Decoding surge in meetings and events, latest trends and ROI
The meetings and events industry is witnessing an interesting shift. Long gone are the days of back-to-back conferences and presentations. Companies are now focusing on allocating more time towards employee wellbeing and entertainment by creating experiential tours and activities. Whether it is in-person meeting, incentive trip, or group travel, corporates and employees are prioritising wellness.
This change has resulted from uncertain events over the last few years, employee burnout and the ultimate realisation of value of in-person meetings and events in business growth. For instance, FCM Meetings and Events India has seen more than 30% increase in demand for incentive trips.
Speaking at the FCM Corporate Travel Summit, Melanie Garett, SVP, Global Sales & Business Development, GBTA said, “The MICE landscape is always changing. We see the rise of AI, introduction of experiential events on the scale and a big focus on sustainability and inclusivity. There is no question the power of in-person meetings is back and the desire is there.” She was part of a panel that also featured:
- Kadmbini Mittal, Regional VP, Commercial India & SWA - Hyatt Hotels
- Ajay Bhatt, Group Head, Corporate Services - Godrej Industries
- Manpreet Bindra, Regional Leader - FCM M&E Asia
Here are the five biggest trends the panel discussed at the event.
1. Employee wellness, yoga retreats take centre stage
Meetings and events sector will see a significant rebound as spending is forecasted to reach almost $800 Billion by 2027, as per a GBTA report. The catalyst of the growth is attributed to spending on hotels, food and beverages, and a desire for premium options. “Over the past few years, behaviour has evolved in terms of experiencing events. Attendees are looking at innovative ways. We have created events around wellness, sustainability, and society. We integrate products with certain events and go to villages, conduct certain sessions on hygiene, wellness and it has always been voluntary, and we have seen a good response,” said Bhatt at the summit.
The demand for experiential events has also led service providers to create out-of-the-box events and activities for their clients. For instance, Mittal shared they focus on yoga, running, village walk, interactive sessions, and group activities. “The new trends are ESG and wellbeing. We have brought a lot of initiative on ESG and wellbeing as well. We also look at how we can bring local produce… farm to table… and help the community. Corporates are also looking at sustainability, and a big part of our focus is also from a food wastage point of view. Sustainability and green initiatives are a big shift,” said Mittal.
2. Rise of luxurious meetings and events experiences
“One of the things that corporates also want are luxurious experiences. Attendees want experiences such as luxury car drive in Lapland, walking tour in Masai Mara, dinner on the banks of River Mara. They are becoming extremely common,” said Bindra.
Besides, global exposure has also contributed to rising expectations among corporates.
“One of the main factors I’ve witnessed in recent years is as companies are turning global, they want to do events in global ways and in this many small and medium enterprises have also picked up good practices of organising an event,” he added.
3. Role of technology in delivering meetings and events
No conversation is complete without understanding the role of technology in elevating the experiences in the meetings and events industry. The FCM Summit saw interesting discussions on tech advancements.
“Technology has become an enabler in the MICE space. On the AI front, we customise mobile applications for attendees and keep them informed with all the details of the event, downtime, itinerary changes, any event happening within the city, etc. This is only going to grow and 2024 will see more tools to enhance the experience. We use VR for product launches to captivate the feel of the event. There have been a few conversations around metaverse as well,” informed Bindra.
4. Impact of rising costs, measuring ROI from meetings and events
Bhatt said companies are looking for alternatives to mitigate costs without compromising on employee experience and engagement.
“Rising costs have forced us to think differently and it gives us a lot of options as well. Success of an event is tangible when we do dealer meets, product launches, etc. the intangible ROI is enhancing brand equity, employees and attendees experience and engagement. For a successful event, planning is important, and choosing the right partner is also important,” said Bhatt.
Does price affect quality? “We are in the business of service. So, we are looking at customer satisfaction and expectation. There are rising costs… talent and variable costs are increasing… but we don’t want to compromise on the quality of the events and look at bringing efficiencies in cost,” said Mittal.
Adding the TMC perspective, Bindra said the ultimate ROI for a travel management company is working in client’s interest and generating value.
“For us, the ROI is what revenue we are generating and have we met client expectations, how better we could have planned. At FCM, we heavily invest on data crunching to inform our customers about learnings, saving costs and much more,” said Bindra.
5. Collaborative ecosystem for the win
In the backdrop of rising costs and increasing expectations, it is crucial to build an ecosystem where suppliers, TMCs and corporates mutually benefit without compromising on the deliverables. Here, effective communication is key.
“It goes to basics which is regular communication. We know cost has increased, so if we can have more conversations in advance at the planning stage, we can curtail the cost, which can go beyond control due to inflation and manpower,” said Bindra at the summit.
The day-long FCM Corporate Travel Summit, powered by GBTA, was held in Mumbai which saw participation from over 150 attendees.
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