Business Tourism in Britain

8/3/2019 Business Tourism in Britain

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briefing

AN OVERVIEW OF THE UKS BUSINESS VISITS AND EVENTS INDUSTRY

BUSINESS

TOURISM

To lead the way in supporting a competitive,

high quality and more profitable business

tourism sector in BritainBusiness Tourism Partnership Mission


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CONTENTS

PAGE

1. Introduction 22. Industry Overview 33. The National Picture 11

a) England 11b) Scotland 12

c) Wales 13d) Northern Ireland 14e) London 15

4. Business Events 16

a) UK Corporate Conferences and Meetings 16b) UK Association Conferences 19c) International Association Conferences 22d) Exhibitions 30

e) Incentive Travel 34f) Corporate Events and Corporate Hospitality 38g) Outdoor Events 41

5. Marketing and Promotion Opportunities 456. Business Events and Creative Enterprise 527. Education, Training and Qualifications 578. Careers in the Industry 669. List of reference literature 7210. The Business Tourism Partnership 75

This Briefing has been compiled by Tony Rogers (BACD and ABPCO)on behalf of the Business Tourism Partnership, and includes

contributions from many Partnership members.


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1. INTRODUCTION

Business tourism in Britain continues to grow from strength tostrength. It is one of tourisms most consistent success stories. Itsimportance is, at long last, beginning to be appreciated.

This Briefing is one of a number of initiatives, undertaken by theBusiness Tourism Partnership, to position the sector at the forefrontof thinking by both the Government and the wider businesscommunity. The Briefing reveals the scope and characteristics of thesectors various segments. It identifies trends and highlights keyissues that need to be addressed if Britain is to continue to have avibrant, competitive, world-class and profitable business tourismsector.

Servicing business visitors and delivering world-class events alsomeans providing stimulating and rewarding careers andemployment prospects. Some 530,000 are estimated to be workingin the sector. Details on opportunities and how to access them areincluded in this Briefing.

Conferences, exhibitions, incentive travel, corporate hospitality,outdoor events and individual business travel account for a growingshare of total inbound tourism into the UK. In 2005, expenditure bybusiness visitors represented 28% of all inbound spend compared

with 32% of spend by holiday visitors. In total the sector isestimated to be worth in excess of 22 billion.

The expenditure by attendees at events makes a considerablecontribution to the leisure economy and to the prosperity of localcommunities. Business tourism is resilient to market changes. Itgenerates inward investment. Business visitors can be encouragedto spend more by experiencing the UKs varied leisure offerings aswell as returning on future holiday trips.

The UK has many unique advantages as a destination for businessevents. It also faces a number of challenges that could undermineits position as one of the leading countries in a highly competitive,international marketplace.

Given proper recognition and support, the sector will lead the wayto even greater, sustainable, high quality growth to the benefit ofthe visitor economy, trade development and creative enterprise.

Michael Hirst OBE, ChairBusiness Tourism PartnershipMarch 2007


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2. INDUSTRY OVERVIEW

Business tourism is a sector of the wider tourism industry.Conferences, exhibitions, incentive travel, corporate hospitality,

outdoor events and individual business travel account for a growingshare of total inbound tourism into the UK. In 2005, expenditure bybusiness visitors represented 28% of all spend compared with 32%of spend by holiday visitors. In total the sector is estimated to beworth in excess of 22 billion.

In more detail the sector comprises:

1. conferences and meetings - estimated to be worth a direct10.3 billion annually to venues by the British Conference

Venues Survey 2006. Around 80 million people attend 1.5 millionmeetings and conferences each year

2. exhibitions and trade fairs - estimated to be worth 9.3billion annually (AEO/KPMG research 2005). This figure does notinclude the value of business transacted at exhibitions

3. incentive travel - no official recent research has beenconducted into this segment but independent and unattributablestatistics indicate that the market for meetings and incentivetravel is worth around 1.2 billion annually

4. corporate events and corporate hospitality - estimates value

this segment at around 1 billion annually5. outdoor events - estimated value of at least 1 billion

annually6. business (or individual corporate) travel. No reliable

estimates of this segment exist, although Business TourismLeads The Waysuggested that it was worth upwards of6 billion per annum in 1998.

The majority of the spend for the corporate events and corporatehospitality segment is within the UK whereas, with the UK-

originating incentive travel business, the majority of this spend willbe overseas. However, it is worthy of note that not only does theincome from this business stay in the UK, but the business employsconsiderable numbers of event professionals as well.

Additionally, because the UK enjoys a worldwide reputation forexcellence in event organisation, UK-based companies also operatemore than their fair share of worldwide programmes for largemultinationals. There are no verifiable statistics available as to thevalue of this business but, while budgets for these events arelargely held outside the UK, the operation of the projectsthemselves not only employs UK-based personnel but the fee


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income it generates is also retained in the UK. It should be notedthat over recent years a number of UK-based companies haveestablished offices aboard in order to service their overseas clientsmore effectively.

Key Characteristics of Business Tourism

The principal features and key characteristics of business tourisminclude the following:

it is at the high quality, high yield end of the tourism spectrum

business tourism is year-round, peaking in Spring and Autumnbut still with high levels of activity in the Summer and Wintermonths, thus sustaining permanent, full-time employment. It is

conservatively estimated that the sector nationally employsaround 530,000 people both directly and indirectly

it complements the leisure tourism sector, relying on much of thesame physical infrastructure, and bringing business todestinations such as seaside resorts which would otherwise bedependent upon a relatively short Summer season for theireconomic health and prosperity

investments in business tourism facilities lead to the

regeneration of urban and inner city areas, as evidenced by citiessuch as Birmingham, Belfast, Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester

many of the investments in a destinations infrastructuredesigned primarily for the business tourist (hotels, transport andcommunications facilities, restaurants, attractions and amenities,even conference auditoria) provide benefits which can also beenjoyed by the leisure tourist and the indigenous population

it is resilient, being much less affected by economic downturns orby disasters than leisure tourism and other sectors of thenational economy

business tourism stimulates future inward investment asbusiness people see the attractions of a destination whiletravelling on business or to attend a conference, exhibition orincentive, and then return to establish business operations there.They can also become unpaid ambassadors for a destination bycommunicating to colleagues and others their positiveimpressions and favourable experiences

the higher quality of personal service demanded by the businesstourist requires more labour-intensive service suppliers, which in


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turn translates into higher levels of job creation. For example,68% of all tourism jobs in Harrogate are created and sustainedby business tourism (principally conferences and exhibitions),only 32% by leisure tourism.

research suggests that approximately 40% of business travellerswill return with their families as leisure visitors to destinationsthey have enjoyed visiting on business

business tourism is sustainable, offering higher added value withfewer negative environmental impacts than mass leisure tourism.Furthermore, conference and incentive visitors are together as agroup, so that it is possible to inform and educate them aboutthe local community in which their event is being held in order tomaximise the enjoyment of their stay but also to minimise any

disruption and possible inconvenience to the local residentpopulation. It is very much harder to manage, in the same way,the impact of individual leisure travellers on a destination.

The individual segments of business tourism (conferences andmeetings, exhibitions and trade fairs, incentive travel, corporateevents, outdoor events) are the five segments which are the primefocus of marketing activities by venues and destinations, becausedecisions about where the events take place are open to influence.

The organisers of the event may have greater flexibility in decidingwhere it is held, and are able to use their own judgement ordiscretion. For this reason, these five segments are often describedas discretionary. Individual business travel, on the other hand, istermed non-discretionary because, while the mode of transport(road, rail or air, for example) used by the individual traveller isopen to influence, their actual travel destination is not.

Business Event Venues

The UK has an extraordinary variety of quality venues available tothe business tourism and business events sector. Based on aminimum seating capacity of 50 theatre-style, around 3,500 venuesmeet this criterion and promote themselves actively to the sector.The British Association of Conference Destinations maintains adatabase of such venues and an analysis of the data reveals:

53% of all venues are hotels 9% are dedicated conference and training centres 2% are major purpose-built convention and exhibition centres 6% are academic venues


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12% are multi-purpose venues (e.g. leisure centres,community centres)

18% are unusual or unique venues

53%

9%2%

6%

12%

18%

Hotels

Conference and Training

Centres

Purpose-built Convention

and Exhibition Centres

Academic Venues

Multi-Purpose Venues

Unusual or Unique Venues

The last category of unusual or unique venues can be further sub-divided revealing a multitude of venues which can help to make anevent particularly memorable. These include:

Heritage venues (e.g. castles, historic buildings, statelyhomes) 29%

Sporting venues (many now integrating high quality meetingand event facilities) 26%

Museums 19% Leisure attractions 13% Theatres 8% Other 3%

Insights into Delegate Expenditure:

In 2006 VisitScotland, VisitBritain, VisitWales and Filte Irelandcommissioned a research programme to update figures on the valueof conference and meetings delegates. 963 interviews wereconducted with delegates at 29 conferences, which werecomplemented by 50 interviews with Professional ConferenceOrganisers. The research showed that expenditure by, and onbehalf of, meeting delegates is considerably higher than previousmultipliers used, emphasising the important contribution which

conferences, meetings and incentive programmes can make todestinations economic prosperity. Further information on this


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research is available on any of the national tourist board websites(see Section 12 for details).

A Regional Example the West Midlands

Research undertaken by KPMG on behalf of Tourism West Midlandsfound that an estimated 208,000 conferences and 392 exhibitionswere held in the West Midlands region in the 2005 calendar year,attracting nearly 14 million visitors and delegates.

The total annual gross direct expenditure attributable to businesstourism activities in the West Midlands is estimated at 4.6 billion.Of this 4.6 billion of direct expenditure, 3.5 billion is retainedwithin the West Midlands. Around 48% (2.2 billion) of the grossdirect expenditure is generated by visitor and delegate personal

expenditure on accommodation, travel, shopping, entertainment,food and beverage. Another 2.4 billion of expenditure is generatedby organiser and exhibitor companies expenditure.

When the multiplied (indirect and induced expenditure) impact ofthe initial direct expenditure is calculated, total expendituregenerated from business tourism activities is 6.3 billion.

Table 2.1 summarises the key economic benefits generated by WestMidlands conference and event activity, including details of jobs

sustained.

Table 2.1

DirectImpact

IndirectImpact

InducedImpact

TotalImpact

Net expenditure 3.5 billion 1.9 billion 0.8billion

6.3

billion

GVA* 1.7 billion 0.8 billion 0.4billion

3.0

billion

Employment(full-timeequivalents)

58,300 26,200 12,700 97,300

*GVA or Gross Value Added is the retained income (wages andprofits).Note: totals may not add up due to rounding.


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Business Tourists from Overseas

Inbound business traveller numbers have risen far more quicklythan leisure tourists since 1979, up 212% in that period comparedwith a 68% increase for leisure visitors. In 2005 spend by business

visitors from overseas exceeded 4 billion, representing 28% ofglobal inbound spend. See Table 2.2 for an analysis of the value,volume and characteristics of inbound business tourism visitors1995-2005.

Issues and Trends Impacting Business in the Sector

The industry faces an ever-rising tide of legislation and regulationwhich not only adds cost but presents considerable challenges aswell. With the increased focus on tourism because of The Olympics

in 2012, more political interference in the short to medium term isto be expected.

This is only one of a number of trends that are evident in thebusiness; all areas of the b2b sector have felt the impact ofprocurement in the process of purchasing of event services. Thishas translated into a much greater emphasis on the need fortransparency with programme costings and a clear requirement toidentify added value as well as providing effective and quantifiablemeasures to gauge return on investment (ROI). As part of this

process, companies are looking to establish preferred supplier liststo give them greater control over the quality of delivery as well asadditional leverage through increased buying power and,importantly, to track their event spend more accurately. Attractivedestinations and facilities are no longer enough business resultsare what count.

Following the 2006 Stern Report, the issue of climate change hasbeen pushed right up the political agenda. Organisers now have toinclude recommendations for offsetting the potential environmental

damage an event may cause.

More and more companies are putting CSR policies in place andexpect event proposals to show a responsible and creative approachthat minimises any local impact their event(s) might have, bothsocially and environmentally.

Since 9/11 security has been a key issue and recent events have onlyserved to increase the focus on risk management and the need forrobust processes that protect both clients and their participants. Thecurrent political uncertainty, particularly in the Middle East, remainsan important factor for organisers planning UK or overseas events.


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Within the corporate arena there is a clear trend towards shortermeetings that are more business-focused and involve short-haulrather than long-haul travel.

Incentive travel, whilst still seen as an important motivator, remainsunder pressure from high levels of UK taxation and also from adesire for clients to avoid the appearance of extravagance whencompany finances are under close scrutiny. The trend with incentivetravel is towards shorter, high impact experiences that combineelements of both soft adventure and free time. The availability offirst-class leisure facilities is also an important factor. Withworldwide travel accessible to all, the challenge to design anddeliver the ultimate travel reward only increases.

Special events, including sporting events, are increasingly beingseen as unique tourist attractions and as destination image makers.The number, diversity, and popularity of special events have grownspectacularly over the past few decades and that growth is set tocontinue. Events offer a strong emotional value to consumers andtherefore occupy a prominent role in their life and can influenceholiday destination choices. Furthermore, research shows thatmajor sports events do not just attract more business and leisurevisitors to the region. They also help raise the profile of thedestination, helping to attract inward investors, inviting customers

to make Britain their preferred destination of choice.


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Table 2.2

Overseas Business Visitors to the UK 1995 - 2005

Purpose Data 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Sum of Spend (m) 2719 2600 2865 3041 3967 3271 2941 2959 2816 2964 3196Other

Business Sum of Visits (000) 4985 5132 5365 5640 7044 6190 5822 6222 6004 6377 6873

Sum of Spend (m) 140 152 161 198 * 188 168 173 223 177 193Trade Fair /

Exhibition Sum of Visits (000) 209 249 283 320 * 280 206 254 329 247 299

Sum of Spend (m) 361 468 475 581 * 589 472 441 393 541 666Conference /Large Meeting Sum of Visits (000) 569 715 699 922 * 852 750 682 633 846 996

Total Sum of Spend (m) 3219 3220 3501 3820 3967 4048 3582 3573 3432 3682 4055Total Sum of Visits (000) 5763 6095 6347 6882 7044 7322 6778 7158 6967 7470 8168

Av. Length of Stay 5.1 4.7 4.8 4.8 4.3 4.2 4.1 4.0 4.2 4.0 4.3

Av. Spend per Day()

107 109 111 111 130 127 122 118 112 115 108

OtherBusiness

Av. Spend per Visit()

545 507 534 539 563 528 505 476 469 465 465

Av. Length of Stay 4.4 3.6 3.8 3.7 * 4.5 3.6 4.0 3.9 3.7 3.8

Av. Spend per Day()

151 171 151 169 * 150 225 169 172 196 170

Trade Fair /

Exhibition

Av. Spend per Visit()

667 610 568 618 * 671 814 682 677 718 646

Av. Length of Stay 4.8 4.3 4.4 4.1 * 3.9 4.3 4.1 4.1 3.8 4.1

Av. Spend per Day()

133 151 154 154 * 176 147 159 153 169 164

Conference /

Large Meeting

Av. Spend per Visit

()

634 655 680 631 * 691 630 646 620 639 669

Total Average Length of Stay 5.0 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.3 4.1 4.1 4.0 4.2 4.0 4.3

Total Average Spend per Day () 111 115 117 118 130 133 127 124 118 123 117

Total Average Spend per Visit () 559 528 552 555 563 553 528 499 493 493 496

* No trade fair or conference data were collected in 1999.

Source: International Passenger Survey (Office for National Statistics)


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3. THE NATIONAL PICTURE

a) England

Meet England is the official body for marketing businessmeetings and events in England, sitting within VisitBritain. Itcontinues to raise the profile of England and its destinations andvenues through its marketing activity.

Trends in England mirror the overall UK picture, with researchfrom VisitBritains quarterly Industry Panel (which includesconference venues and organisers) showing a mainly positiveperformance for 2006 (summer).

According to UKTS (Quarter 1, 2006) Business Trips account forover 1/5 of all trips taken in England. In 2006, more than half ofall business nights spent in the UKs branded hotels were formeetings, conferences or training sessions (BDRC MeetingsMarket Survey).

Green issues/sustainability offer potential new opportunities forEngland to Lead the Way in offering clients venues andprogrammes which are sensitive to Corporate SocialResponsibility policies and the environment. Convention centres

are acutely aware of some of the issues and are looking at waysto reduce overheads and energy costs (which have increaseddramatically), but which are difficult to pass on to customers.

Competition between venues and destinations (UK and overseas)is tough, although England wins out on diversity of products andvariety of experiences available and its unrivalled transportnetwork. Meeting planners are looking for unique venues andexperiences that have not been tried before.

Security, work/life balance and business extenders: moreexecutives prefer to stay closer to home (rather than traveloverseas for meetings). According to Barclaycards tenth annualBusiness Travel Survey (March 2006), 22% of the UKs chiefexecutives are travelling less, with one-third of these saying theyhad made a concerted effort to improve their work/life balanceand 67% that they were turning trips from business to leisure bytaking their partners with them.

According to the UK Conference Market Survey 2006, Englandstop 10 destinations for corporate meetings are (in order):


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o Londono Birminghamo Manchestero Newcastle-Gatesheado Liverpoolo Brightono Coventryo Harrogateo Blackpoolo Bournemouth

and for association meetings:

o Londono Birminghamo Manchestero Leedso Newcastle-Gatesheado Liverpoolo Brightono Bournemoutho Blackpoolo Harrogate

b) Scotland

VisitScotlands annual customer satisfaction tracking surveyrevealed continued high levels of satisfaction with Scotland as abusiness tourism destination: 96% of meeting planners are satisfiedwith events held in Scotland, and 87% of bookers would considerusing Scotland again for future events.

VisitScotlands Business Tourism Unit (BTU) is also well-regarded asa source of advice and information 92% of meeting planners are

satisfied with the overall service and support materials received,while the BTUs enquiry handling service delivers 100% satisfaction.1 in 3 enquiries to the BTU result in a booking, demonstrating thevalue of convention bureaux services.

In 2005 the Scottish Executive replaced the 14 existing Area TouristBoards with an integrated VisitScotland network to act as one teamfor tourism. Business tourism is now served by a network ofVisitScotland offices with Regional Business Tourism Managersoperating under the umbrella of the BTU and working in partnershipwith City Convention Bureaux in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen andDundee. The BTU has emerged from this integration process


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stronger and better resourced than ever before, with new positionsto focus on key sectors including an Associations Manager and aLondon Account Development Manager, greater cohesion ofmarketing activities and more streamlined customer communicationchannels.

VisitScotland recently launched the worlds first independentgrading scheme for Exclusive Use Venues. The new grading schemeaims to develop a national standard of quality against criteriaranging from maintenance and reservations to amenities such asconference facilities and leisure activities. Membership of thescheme is capped at 25 venues, all of which must be awarded fouror five stars, thus ensuring that guests are guaranteed to stay in aheritage property which offers a quintessentially Scottishexperience, complete with excellent hospitality and the highest

calibre of cuisine and facilities.

c) Wales

On April 1st 2006 the Wales Tourist Board merged with the WelshAssembly Government (WAG) and now forms part of the Tourismand Marketing Division within the Department of EnterpriseInnovation and Networks (formerly the Economic DevelopmentDepartment of WAG), under the name of Visit Wales.

The merger has strengthened the Business Tourism Unit which ispart of the Events, Sponsorship and Business Tourism Divisionwithin Visit Wales Marketing. The Business Tourism Team now hasthree dedicated staff: Senior Marketing Executive, Sales &Marketing Executive and Marketing Assistant, plus the Head ofDivision.

An evaluation of the Visit Wales business tourism campaign for thefinancial year to the end of 2006 showed that an additional 30

million was spent in the Welsh economy as a direct result of thecampaign.

Table 3.1 provides a summary of data from the InternationalPassenger Survey and the UK Tourism Survey to show the value ofbusiness tourism to Wales over the 5-year period 2000-2005.


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Table 3.1Wales Share of Business Tourism in the UK 2005

UK Wales

Trips(m)

Spend(m)

Trips (m) Spend(m)

Domesticvisitors

22.5 5251 1.3 336

Overseasvisitors

8.2 4055 0.2 68

TOTAL 30.7 9306 1.5 404Source: UKTS and IPS.

Visit Wales Business Class Award Scheme

Visit Wales has developed a Business Class Award Scheme, which

assesses meeting/conference facilities and bedroom accommodationfor the business tourist.

Meeting spaces and bedrooms are graded separately and accordingto a list of specified criteria. The bedroom criteria range from havingan uncluttered and adequate workspace and an express or earlycheckout through to having fax, email access and voicemail in thebedroom. Meeting rooms, meanwhile, are judged on theirsoundproofing, pa systems, lighting, high speed internet access andvideo conference facilities among others. To be considered for the

Award, serviced accommodation must first attain at least threestars in the Visit Wales or AA grading scheme. The scheme hasthree progressive levels Silver, Gold and Platinum.

d) Northern Ireland

The Business Tourism Unit of the Northern Ireland Tourist Boardwas established in 2004(having previously operated as theNorthern Ireland Conference Bureau since 1994). The NorthernIreland Tourist Board (NITB) is the statutory organizationresponsible for encouraging and developing tourism in NorthernIreland. NITB, in turn, is responsible to the Department ofEnterprise, Trade and Investment for Northern Ireland (DETI). NITBhas highlighted business tourism as one of its winning themeswithin its Strategic Framework for Action 2004-2007.

The Business Tourism Unit (BTU), as part of the national touristboard, is wholly funded by the Government, although the industryin Northern Ireland pays to participate in marketing activities,generating additional operating income. The Unit has a team

consisting of a manager, international sales person, domesticbusiness tourism officer and administrative backup. With the


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establishment of Tourism Ireland, however, the Unit also hasrepresentation through 18 overseas market offices.

The BTUs main role is to provide strategic leadership and supportthe activities of the two city convention bureaux in Belfast and

Derry and the regional tourism partnerships (RTPs) to attractconference, association and incentive business to Northern Ireland.

e) London

The business and conventions activity within Visit London continuesto be of growing importance to the organisation and its stakeholdersas a whole. London has now launched a ten year vision for tourism,and business and events is of real significance within this, both in

marketing and promotional terms as well as product and serviceareas.

Visit London recently signed a four-year contract with the LondonDevelopment Agency commencing in April 2006 and ending inMarch 2010. This contract, along with the private sector incomes itgenerates, will see Visit Londons budget over the period reachnearly 90m and the direct funding for business tourism activitieswill grow from 8.4% to 11.6%.

Visit London now compiles a quarterly business tourism monitor tomeasure performance in this sector to allow the industry to gaugeits performance volume of events, attendee numbers etc.

Further activities include expansion into China, Australasia and Indiato target new business, enhanced physical brand presence atEuropean trade shows; focus on association and not-for-profitbusiness with additional funding and increased staffing. In addition,Visit London is growing its convention services offer both for theorganiser and the delegate, with plans for a London congress card

and event support packages.

Numbers of event enquiries are growing, with conversions andspend increasing year on year.

Additional future activities will be geared towards unlocking thepotential for the business of sport and major events, with a mindtowards sustainability and green issues.


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4. BUSINESS EVENTS

This section examines the individual discretionary business tourismsegments in detail, looking at their key characteristics and trends,

volume and value data, issues affecting future growth, etc.

The business to business (b2b) sector can be characterised asextremely dynamic and an arena that embraces a wide spectrum oflive events providing creative and valuable solutions for corporatecustomers. Solutions that show events are now used very much asexperiential brand experiences delivering powerful and effectivemarketing and communication messages right across the board.

The business in the UK today is diverse and it is estimated that

there are in excess of 3000 agencies of differing genres organisinglive events of some kind. In addition to traditional event organisers,these agencies range from small PR companies to event marketingorganisations through to large multinational production houses.

The events they organise range from off-site board meetings andcompany AGMs to association meetings, large scale medicalsymposia, major product launches through to opening and closingceremonies for worldwide events, such as the Olympic Games.

a) UK CORPORATE CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS

Definition and Background

The corporate or for-profit segment encompasses all the variedpurposes for which meetings, conferences and events are held bycompanies or corporate organisations, including the following:

sales conferences product launches

management meetings training courses business presentations Annual General meetings

(This segment can also include incentive travel however, this isdiscussed as a separate segment in this booklet).

In volume terms the British Conference Venues Survey 2006indicates that 62% of the estimated 1.58 million conferences andmeetings held at UK venues in 2005 was generated by thecorporate sector.


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Other Characteristics

The UK Conference Market Survey researches 300 corporate

organisers annually. The 2006 survey revealed the followingcharacteristics for this segment:

Corporate events tend to have lower numbers of attendeesthan other types of conference (see next two sections). Whilethe mean number of delegates attending corporate events in2005 was 140 (up from 99 in 2004), the majority of eventswere still for less than 100 delegates

The average duration of a corporate event is now only 1.1 days(down from 1.6 days in 2001). Only 26% of events are

residential, compared with over 40% in previous years Their top three preferred venue types are city centre hotels,

purpose-built convention centres and unusual venues (the twolatter being rated equally)

Primarily location, price/value for money and access influencechoice of venue, although availability, quality of service andquality of food are also very important. The factors causingmost dissatisfaction are the venues staffs understanding of anorganisers needs, and speed of service

The mean lead-time within which events take place is 7.3

months, continuing a trend of longer lead times shown overrecent years (5.7 months in 2004, 4.6 months in 2003),although this is still a far shorter time than for most othersegments.

Economic Benefits

It is difficult to define the universe for this segment in terms ofexactly what constitutes a meeting and how many companies holdevents at any one time. Estimating the value, therefore, is also

difficult. However, the corporate meetings segment is recognised asone of the most valuable segments of the conference market. It hasbeen consistently shown to represent approximately two-thirds ofthe overall conference market which, in 2005, was worth anestimated 10.3 billion to venues alone (a figure which takes noaccount of the wider economic impact generated by conferenceactivity).

Corporate organisers researched for the UK Conference MarketSurvey 2006 spent an average 141,000 per year on events.


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Trends and Issues

The health of the economy in general, the state of markets and

market changes in industry hugely affect corporate events. Theyalso seem to be most affected by other forms of communication,although between 2002 and 2006 the volume of events for thissegment remained relatively stable.

During 2005, the most popular forms of communication used bycorporate organisers in addition to face-to-face meetings wereteleconferencing (81%), e-mail/intranet (79%) and website/internet (71%). However, far from reducing the need formeetings, the proliferation of text, e-mail and internet messaging

has increased the value and importance of face-to-facecommunication. Making messages memorable has become thegreatest business challenge of the 21st century.

Interactive conferences have become the popular vehicle for theeffective delivery and retention of key messages. So, out goes thetheatre-style presentation from the file of suited directors hidingbehind the lectern on a lofty and distant stage and in comesGladiator style in-the-round tiered seating and rovingmicrophones for intimate and relaxed Q&A sessions.

An increasing use of theatrical and audience participationtechniques is also evident. Rather than simply being added to theend of conference programmes, team challenges, quizzes and groupmusical performances are all being integrated to encourage realinvolvement and assist with message retention.

Advances in technology have also hugely influenced this segment interms of use of presentation technology. The UK Conference MarketSurvey 2006 identified that 88% of organisers used PC-linked data

projection for presentations and 34% used electronic whiteboards,up from 18.5% the year before. Expectations of venues are high interms of their ability to keep up with advances in presentationtechnology.

Corporate conference organisers also have high expectations for allaspects of their meeting experience, demanding high qualitymeeting facilities and service, as justification for use of theirvaluable time in holding meetings. Recruiting and training staff tomeet these service requirements is a continuing challenge for thoseproviding facilities and services for conferences.


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b) UK ASSOCIATION CONFERENCES


The national association conference segment includes a wide range

of not-for-profit organisations whose memberships and affiliationsare primarily national rather than international. Such organisationsinclude:

professional associations and institutions trade associations trade unions societies and educational bodies

as well as a plethora of voluntary bodies of which membership ismore related to a hobby or interest rather than a personsemployment e.g. political parties, charities, voluntary associations,religious groups. The term national association, while not beingvery precise, is used to describe this segment.

In volume terms, research indicates:

a universe of up to 3,000 UK national associations active in theconference market (BACD research). However, it is a dynamicsegment with associations being created (and also beingdissolved) on a continuous basis, so that there can never bemore than an informed estimate of the total number of suchorganisations

national associations form a significant part of the UK conferencemarket, accounting for around 30% of all conferences held

Typically national associations hold a major annual conferencewithin the UK and many arrange other, smaller meetings andconferences during the year, again mostly (and often exclusively)

within the UK.

A proportion of these national associations are also linked to aEuropean or international association or federation. In this way theyprovide the conduit or opportunity for bids by UK associations tohost the international conference (see section 4c) of a particularorganisation.


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Economic Benefits

Research* undertaken by the British Association of ConferenceDestinations from its own database of national associations showsthat the major annual conferences of these organisations bringtogether substantial numbers of delegates:

22% of national associations have an annual conference of up to100 delegates

19% of national associations have an annual conference of 100-200 delegates

36% of national associations have an annual conference of 200-

500 delegates 11% of national associations have an annual conference of 500-

1000 delegates 12% of national associations have an annual conference of

1000+ delegates(* based on a sample of 1423 national associations in September

2002)

Many of these conferences last from 2-4 days, with an averagespend per delegate per day of 221 and an additional organiser

spend of 240 per day (Delegate Expenditure Survey 2006). It isnot unusual, therefore, for a national association annual conferenceto generate expenditure of several hundred thousand pounds, whilevery large conferences of 1000+ delegates can produce aneconomic impact worth millions of pounds. For example,Bournemouth estimates the economic benefit of The ConservativeParty Conference to the town in 2006 at 10 million (with almost9,000 delegates generating 50,000 bednights). Many delegates(often with partners) will arrive early for a conference or extendtheir stay once the conference is over, increasing their expenditure

in a destination as leisure visitors. In addition, many contractors,suppliers and exhibitors, as well as media and security personnel inthe case of major political conferences, may also arrive in adestination several days before the commencement of an event.

Benefits are not just in direct and indirect spend but also inemployment created and sustained. Harrogate, for example, candemonstrate that, of 7000 people employed in tourism in theHarrogate district, 4750 (68%) are in jobs supported by businesstourism, a large part (approximately 70%) of which is comprised ofnational association conferences.


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Seasonality is another important benefit of national associationconferences, especially for those resort destinations for whichleisure tourism is important. The peak seasons for nationalassociation conferences are March-June (and increasingly now intoJuly as well) and September-November, thus extending the

shoulder months surrounding the main summer season (which hastended to become shorter).

Characteristics of National Association Conferences

Many national associations choose the locations of theirconferences on a rotation system e.g. north-south rotation, orrotation around several regions of the UK on a 3 or 4-year cycle.Information on the rotation of a particular event is crucial tothose destinations and venues keen to win that piece of business

for themselves The decision-making process in respect of choice of

venue/destination can be elongated, with interested locationsbeing invited to submit a bid document (paper or web-basedformat) which will then be considered by a selection panel orcommittee, and may involve the making of a formal presentationto such a panel

The most popular types of venues used by national associationconferences are (in order) city centre hotels, university/academicvenues, purpose-built convention centres and dedicated

conference/training centres (UK Conference Market Survey 2006) Key factors influencing venue selection (UK Conference Market

Survey 2006) are, in order of priority:

1. Location2. Price/value for money3. Access (road, rail, air)4. Availability5. Quality of service

Availability of dates is a key factor since a number of associationsare locked into specific dates for the staging of their conference,restricting their choice of venue/location because the venues thatthey might prefer to use are not available (having other eventsare already booked in).


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Future Trends and Issues

The demands made upon conference venues catering for nationalassociation conferences will continue to grow, both in theprovision of electronic communications technology but also in

requirements for space (e.g. increasing use ofsyndicate/breakout rooms, greater need for exhibition space),better accessibility for disabled delegates, and for higher levels ofsecurity

Organisers are likely to seek more integrated infrastructures withhigh quality transport systems to and within a destination, plusvenue, accommodation, restaurants and attractions in closeproximity - Manchesters conventions quarter branded asManchester Central Convention Complex is one example of sucha development

More destination marketing organisations are establishingambassador programmes designed specifically to target thenational and international association conference segments. Suchprogrammes identify and recruit key individuals within localcommunities to act as ambassadors for the destination inpromoting its benefits and in bidding to bring the majorconference of the organisation of which they are a member totheir own destination.

c) INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION CONFERENCES


The international association conference market, where the termsconvention and congress are frequently used to describe majorevents, brings together members with common professional,scientific or social interests. The associations vary in size andmembership, can be regional or international in scope and usemeetings as one of the most important communication methods

with members. The associations also use their meetings as a keyrevenue generator to support the headquarters and fund outreachactivities such as specialised research and public health campaignsas well as programmes in developing countries.

Individuals attend congresses because they provide an opportunityto share ideas and information about their industry or field,impart/gain intelligence and research and network with industrycolleagues. Academic and research institutions send delegates toattend meetings so as to publish and present results of research, togain publicity for their research units/programmes, to enhance theinstitutions standing and attract further government and industry


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sponsorship. There is also a requirement in some, particularlymedical, professions to attend congresses as a part of a continuingprofessional development (CPD) programme.

The congresses alternate between venues within their region or the

world either on a fixed rotation or by invitation. They can be heldannually, or every two, three, four or even five years. A wholeindustry has been built up around the association meetings segmentas their economic attractiveness has become apparent todestinations globally.

There are two methods of researching these congresses with a viewto hosting their events in the UK: this is either done through the UKmember contact or Chapter of an international association or by

approaching the headquarters, usually located overseas, directly.There are clusters of international association headquarters inLondon, Paris, Brussels, Geneva and The Hague as well as inWashington DC. However, there is a difference in style betweenassociations headquartered in Europe, which are usually run by asmall number of full-time staff with a series of executivecommittees, and those located in North America, where theorganisations generally have very large headquarters buildings andstaff (they also tend to be much more commercially aware, havingless of an historical background.) Specialised research helps

convention cities determine the so-called next open date (i.e. thenext year for which the location of the congress has not beendecided), the exact bidding process and the representative mostlikely to extend the invitation.

As with national association meetings, the segment encompasses awide range of organisations which can be governmental,professional, scientific or social in nature. However, it is usually themedical, scientific and pharmaceutical meetings which are the mostattractive both in terms of attendance and revenue. IT andtelecommunications has also been a major industry sector using this

form of communication but recent changes in the US economy andin the telecoms industry itself have certainly reduced congressdemand from this sector, which had traditionally been a stablesource of meetings.

It would be impossible to put a figure on the number ofinternational associations in existence around the world. The Unionof International Associations (UIA) has over 25,000 registered in itsYearbook but it is important to remember that only a fraction ofthese will meet internationally and on a rotational basis, making theUK a potential destination. The UIA measures approximately 9,000

meetings annually and publishes a well respected and robust annualstatistical review (response rate to their questionnaire mailings is


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60%). The International Congress and Convention Association(ICCA) database measures a similar level and both have extensivestatistical information on the characteristics of the meetings and thedestinations where these are held.

Economic Benefits

In value terms the most important targets for any convention cityare the large congresses, ranging from 1000 to 15,000+ delegates,and which attract a high overseas attendance. According to theDelegate Expenditure Survey 2006, international associationconference delegates spend an average of 240 per day attendingevents in the UK, with a further 124 per delegate being spent bythe event organizers.

Conferences in the medical or pharmaceutical sectors often attractlucrative sponsorship from pharmaceutical and medical equipmentcompanies keen to promote their products and these events usuallyhave valuable commercial exhibitions attached. The commercialsponsors will often host groups of their top clients in whicheverspecialist field and prepare a luxury programme for them. Thesegroups can make up as much as 75% of the delegates attending aconference and there is competition between the companies toprovide quality programmes for their delegates e.g. high qualityhotels within walking distance of the conference venue and up-

market exclusive social functions.Large congresses also tend to feature pre- and post-congress toursfor delegates and accompanying persons programmes which makethem doubly valuable to their chosen destination. A positivebusiness visit could also stimulate a future leisure visit up to 40%of business travellers to a destination return on a leisure trip.

Furthermore, winning and hosting key international conferences isseen as a major economic boost to the host city and many use theconference sector as a means of urban renewal and regeneration.The city of Glasgow employed 40,000 people on the Clyde at theheight of the shipbuilding era but as the industry declined so did thearea around it. The Scottish Exhibition+Conference Centre (SECC)was built on the banks of the Clyde in 1985 and over the last tenyears 1 billion has been spent in transforming Clydeside asconference business and general tourism have grown. Glasgow nowemploys 30,000 people in tourism-related industries (equating to14.5% of Scotlands total tourism workforce) and it is one of theUKs most successful conference destinations.

As with the national association segment, seasonality is another

positive feature of the international association segment. Thesecongresses tend to avoid the summer months when leisure tourism


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is at its peak, looking instead to the Spring and Autumn periods.There are a large group of conferences that need to be run duringthe academic vacation period but organisers of these events willlook for destinations that have a lower hotel occupancy in theJuly/August period and, indeed, from mid-June to the end of

September. Delegates attending these conferences are more likelyto bring families/accompanying people with them and add on aholiday before or after the congress. Organisers are also able totake advantage of university halls of residence to provide thebudget end of the accommodation spectrum.The growing numberof world-class facilities being built around the UK means that thereare opportunities to promote good regional spread of events aroundthe country.

The national and international association segments also providecontinuous economic benefit in times of recession, either local orworldwide. While corporate events diminish at such times,association events continue regardless although numbers may beless than when economies are buoyant.

Characteristics of International Association Conferences

The truly international associations hold their congresses on arotational basis, often picking venues in Europe one year, North

America the next, Asia/Pacific the next and so on according to theirown statutory regions. This means that there can often be a gap ofmany years between the UK hosting two conferences of the sameassociation, particularly if the event is held only every four years.For this reason this business is usually regarded as bringing one-offevents to a venue/destination. Other characteristics include:

The lead-in time can be very long: if the conference isquadrennial, an eight to twelve year gap between bidding for andactually staging the event is not unusual

The international congress segment is city-led i.e. bids generallycome from Birmingham, Barcelona or Vienna for example, ratherthan the UK, Spain or Austria

When destination selection is by invitation, the UK contact iscrucial in spearheading the bid process to bring the event to theUK. It is a researchers role to identify that UK contact andencourage that person to submit a bid. It is important to notethat the UK contact is rarely a full-time meeting planner orassociation secretariat and is more often a professional workingin that field (e.g. surgeon, engineer, scientist). This makes it

especially hard for them to work on producing a bid both from atime and knowledge perspective


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Many convention bureaux run conference ambassadorprogrammes where they actively identify and recruit localacademics and scientists who have connections to internationalorganisations. The cities encourage their ambassadors tosubmit bids to host events in their field in their home city and

ask these ambassadors to promote the destination on theirbehalf when attending events abroad

For the larger congresses a Professional Conference Organiser(PCO) is often employed to take on the administration behind theevent. The PCOs role would include sourcing venues, preparing abid document, raising sponsorship, running the concurrent tradeexhibition, managing finances, running promotional campaigns,establishing registration and accommodation booking systems,organising social programmes, facilitating the submission ofpapers and abstracts beforehand as well as actually organising

the event itself. The PCO works closely with the client, venue anddestination and usually charges an administration fee based onthe size of the congress and the number of delegates attending

A bid document normally has to be submitted prior to anydestination selection and it is then down to members, a specialcommittee or the headquarters to vote. The internationalassociation headquarters is not always the ultimate decision-maker in destination selection. However, they usually are when abid is not required. When a bid is required, the headquartersteam can be a key influencer

Destinations and venues requested vary enormously but the

larger congresses are looking for purpose-built auditoria capableof holding the main plenary session, a range of smaller meetingrooms to provide a series of concurrent sessions, along withexhibition space. They would also be looking for plenty of nearbyaccommodation (most organisers will request within walkingdistance to avoid having to pay for a coach transfer operation)and an attractive destination with a good social programmewhich will encourage a high delegate attendance. It is importantthat the destination is both financially viable in terms of the

usual conference budget and cost-effective to allow low-enoughregistration fees which will encourage high delegate attendance.


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Generally:- As international associations become larger and more complex,

they are appointing core PCOs who look after all of their

meeting requirements regardless of where the event is takingplace (i.e. they are contracted to work on the event over a periodof years, not just for one event). These core PCOs are alsoincreasingly becoming secretariats for some of the biggerassociations, running their recruitment drives, membershipprogrammes and communication strategies as well as themeetings themselves. This means that core PCOs are becomingthe new clients as destinations seek to identify and influencethose making the decisions. The North American business hassome very well established Association Management Companies

(AMCs) which also act as PCOs With the supply of convention facilities increasing around the

world, competition becomes more intense. As some of the largerconferences grow in size and complexity (e.g. with an increasingnumber of parallel sessions), organisers are opting for a smallernumber of tried and tested venues to work with. This makes iteasier for the association in terms of managing the meeting. Italso allows them to plan financially with greater ease and to getthe dates of tenancy they want as they are a recurrent client atthe venue

The influence of industry associations will have greater impact on

the destinations selected. Organisations such as theInternational Pharmaceutical Congress Advisory Association(IPCAA) are becoming increasingly influential and their memberswill only continue to support events held in destinations that suittheir needs as well as those of the event. The growth ofspecialist industry groups linked to large international meetingswill continue apace and these too will become increasinglyinfluential in the choice of destination

The growth of new technologies is making congresses,

particularly in the scientific field, more innovative in theirpresentation technologies and on-line registrations. Theconference venues industry is one of the first in Europe to adoptthe regular use of Broadband and wireless technology with LocalArea Networks (LANs) for networked electronic presentations.This greatly speeds up publication of proceedings, allows for last-minute updates and improves communication with delegatesbefore and after the meeting. With people wanting to spend lesstime out of the office, they can prepare for meetings in advanceand maximise the physical exchange on-site. There is a trend toreduce the length of meetings and the average length is now 3days duration whereas 10 years ago it was typically 5 days. As


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potential delegates seek to travel less or stay closer to home andas the cost of being out of the office increases, the newcommunications technology, including virtual conferencing, ishaving a greater role to play

The ongoing development of new fields of science and medicine

is also leading to a greater number of more specialistconferences in this field. The industry is witnessing the evolutionof very large meetings which are creating smaller, morespecialised events alongside or at other times. This also makesit that much harder to track associations and their respectivemeetings as contacts move on and subject matters become evenmore complex and fragmented

The regional meeting (e.g. European) is growing in importancecompared to its international counterpart. The EuropeanAssociation for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), for example, is

now almost the same size as the International DiabetesFederation meeting and it has a large and growing non-European-based delegate attendance. Similarly the quality ofscience and the size of the European Urology meeting is nowmore important than the international Urology meeting

Increasingly, as congresses become larger and more importanteconomically, particularly to the host city, the associationconvention is being used as a bargaining chip to engage moresupport or increase membership in areas of the world where itmay be minimal. Often, despite a strong bid from a destination

such as London, Paris, Sydney or Montreal, it is lost at the lastminute with many conventions opting instead for a Far Eastdestination or a developing country as a result of an emotionalpitch. Such emerging destinations invariably do not have theNational Chapter support or desired infrastructure to host aconvention but they represent important new markets and newincome for associations and well-established congressdestinations such as the UK are increasingly finding themselvescompeting against such locations.

In the UK:-

The UK is considered generally to be an expensive destination witha fragmented convention industry but future business lies in theUKs key strengths which include:-

Ease of access Quality and variety of venues High standards of service amongst UK conference organisers


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Strength of British science and medicine - British academicsregularly hold key positions within the decision-making Boards ofthe associations

Ease and speed of VAT reclaim English language which is now the language of choice for

international meetings The UK is one of the most attractive destinations culturally for

international delegates, ensuring that congresses held in the UKare better attended and more profitable than those heldelsewhere.

However:-

With the exception of one or two cities, the UK is not able tooffer large-scale public subvention of conferences, venues or

delegates. This is done in other cities around the world and canbe a deciding factor as overall costs of conventions increase

Public finance for new products and improvements to existingconference facilities has disappeared in the UK except forWales where a grant of up to 50,000 for such projects can beobtained

The economic importance of conferences to a countryis far morerecognised by the UKs main competitor countries than it is in theUK. Obtaining governmental non-financial support for aconference bid is very difficult or impossible. For example, it was

not until 2002 that the Prime Minister agreed to front aconference bid video for the first time ever, whereas leaders andsenior statesmen from other nations have been supportingconferences in this way for many years.

Despite the VAT recovery systems in place, not every cost can berecovered. Most other EU member states have lower concessionVAT rates for tourists and conference delegates

The importance of the accompanying exhibition, with itsattendant long distance freight movements, is also affected bythe UKs high tax on diesel

Despite active ambassador programmes, the academic world isstill hesitant to bid for international meetings due to a perceivedheavy workload, lack of knowledge of the available conventionfacilities and lack of awareness of the industry support availableto them. They are also less enthusiastic about their own hometowns as a destinations compared to their European counterparts

The lack of a purpose-built congress centre in London, with acapacity for over 3,000 delegates, is preventing many highprofile meetings, which would only consider a capital city, comingto the UK. Equally the general lack of large scale integratedhotel and meeting facilities, such as they have in the USA andthe Far East, is also preventing the UK from winning many of the


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large conventions. However, this applies to most of Europe and,with space at a premium and public money not forthcoming, thewhole European region is at a disadvantage

The fact that the UK has not adopted the European singlecurrency is a setback in that organising events in the UK can

become more expensive with currency transaction bank charges.

Despite all the above and whatever impacts technology, globaleconomies and terrorism are likely to have, there is still the desireamongst international associations to meet, press the flesh andexchange views which will always remain. According to ICCA, theUK has continued to host a similar number of the internationalassociation congresses as in recent years (270 in 2005), although ithas dropped to fourth place in the league table behind the USA,Germany and Spain.

The Business Tourism Partnership is working to encourage a morecollaborative and cohesive approach to winning more internationalassociation conferences, particularly through the involvement ofBritish embassies and consulates, British Council offices overseas,VisitBritain staff and key Government departments in the UK in theresearch and bidding processes. It is also actively lobbying for theconstruction of a major purpose-built convention centre for London.

d) EXHIBITIONS

An exhibition was defined by the Exhibitions Liaison Council in1995 as a presentation of products or services to an invitedaudience with the objective of inducing a sale or informing thevisitor. It is a form of three dimensional advertising where, in manyinstances, the product can be seen, handled, assessed bydemonstration, and in some cases even smelt or tasted.

In general terms, exhibitions can be further defined according to the

market/visitors they target:

- Trade (or business-to-business/b2b) exhibitions are aimedprimarily at those working within a particular trade sector, and areforums where related businesses meet face-to-face in order to fulfila multitude of objectives

- Public/Consumer (or business-to-consumer/b2c)exhibitions are aimed at either the wider general public or focusedconsumer groups. A charge is often made for admission.


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- Trade/Public exhibitions are a combination of these twoleading exhibition types; organised to attract both types of visitors,they are exhibitions where trade representatives meet each otherface-to-face, but also interact with consumers.

The exhibition sector consists of three main groups:

organisers of the exhibitionsthe venues where the exhibitions are heldthose businesses contracted by the organisers and/or exhibitors

to supply services for/at the exhibition.

Events Industry Alliance (EIA)

The Events Industry Alliance (EIA) is the new marketing arm for the

exhibitions and events industry, and is equally owned by membersof three associations that have increasingly worked together tospeak with one cohesive voice for the industry: the Association ofExhibition Contractors (AEC), the Association of Event Organisers(AEO) and the Association of Event Venues (AEV). The EIA is taskedwith communicating the huge opportunities for business growth viathe medium of face-to-face marketing, and increasing the overallrecognition of this powerful, effective and unique media channel toits five audiences of press, clients, agencies/media planners,Government and academia.

Within the three key sectors of the events/exhibitions industry listedabove, there are a host of supplier types, ranging from audio-visual,caterers, electricians, registration to web site design. There arecurrently 135 different supplier categories represented by themembership of AEC, AEO and AEV.

Economic Impact

In 2005, KPMG undertook the first ever Economic Impact of the UK

Exhibitions Industry study. The study, commissioned by the AEOand supported by the AEV, demonstrated that the industry makes asignificant contribution to the national economy. Its key findingsgive a detailed analysis of the exhibition sector:

- An estimated 1,800 exhibitions are held annually in the UK- Over 17 million visitors attend UK exhibitions each year- Nearly 270,000 exhibitors attend UK exhibitions each year- Approximately 7% of visitors and 13% of exhibitors to UK

exhibitions are from overseas- The total annual expenditure generated from UK exhibition

activity is 9.3 billion


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- The UK exhibition industry generates a total annual GDPcontribution of 4.1 billion

- The total annual tax revenues generated by exhibition activityis estimated at 1 billion

- UK exhibitions support an estimated 137,000 FTE jobs across

the UK, some 0.5% of total UK employment (approximately 1 in200 UK jobs). It is also important to acknowledge that thesectors in which exhibition visitors and exhibitors spend theirmoney (hotels, restaurants etc.) typically employ a lot of part-time staff. Exhibition activity, therefore, stimulates flexibility inthe economy and encourages employment opportunities forwomen, ethnic minorities, those with lower formal qualifications,and those at the lower end of the skills spectrum.

Total gross direct expenditure by UK exhibition activity on

segmented leisure sectors:

- Accommodation: 720 million - generating approximately 19million annual bed nights!

- Food & beverage: 403 million- Shopping: 312 million- Travel: 258 million- Entertainment: 179 million- Other: 54 million

All exhibitions play a vital role in the UK economy in generatingexports. Many exhibitions held in the UK have establishedthemselves as a strong base for international trade.

Exhibitions do more than just sell: they build product branding,strengthen existing customer relationships, produce high qualityleads, educate, have applications for market research, generatemedia coverage and are often used to launch new products.Exhibitions play a vital role in the marketing mix offering a widerange of benefits.

Exhibitions provide a cost-effective competitive platform for smalland medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to promote and sell theirproducts and services, enabling many SMEs to establish themselvesin the marketplace and, through international visitor attendance atexhibitions, often providing SMEs with their first openings to exportmarkets.

In terms ofseasonality,the peak seasons for trade exhibitions areFebruary to June and September to November, but when publicexhibitions are also taken into account exhibitions becomeessentially a year-round activity.


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Characteristics of Exhibitions

Most exhibitions tend to be annual and are held at the samevenue year on year. There are also a number of biennial events,

while some of the large international shows are just held everyfour years

The time of year an exhibition is held is critical to its success. Toensure they obtain their desired time slot, organisers usuallybook the venue at least one year in advance

The timing and venue chosen for exhibitions are to a large extentdictated by the market conditions of the trade sector which theyrepresent

Factors that influence the choice of venue for an exhibitioninclude (in no particular order as they vary in importance

between different types of exhibitions):1. Rental and service costs2. Capacity of venue3.Location of venue4.Contractual relationship with venue5.Accessibility of venue


Exhibition organising is a creative enterprise activity which, to

survive, has to stay at the leading edge of marketing. To achievethis, the following are being considered:

To enhance their exhibition product, an increasing number oforganisers are developing conferences and specialist seminarsalongside their exhibitions

A number of technological opportunities for exhibitions arebecoming available on which organisers can capitalise, usingtechnologies like audio-conferencing, videoconferencing andwebcasting

Exhibition organisers set up web sites to run alongside theirevents. A three-day event becomes a 12-month promotionalevent. This leads to increased opportunities for sponsorshipand advertising through the web site, and allows an enhancedvisitor and exhibitor experience through providing additionalinformation and an extension in communications

This technology also allows for on-line registration, whichoffers a faster and more convenient form of registering for anexhibition, while allowing organisers continually to updatetheir information and keep people constantly informed

The new technology is used to enhance (not replace) theexhibition, as there is no substitute for the face-to-face


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contact, customer interaction and the ability for the customerphysically to feel, see, taste, smell, test and try the product

More organisers are looking to increase the number of publicshows. Public shows are seen as being informative, as well asproviding marketing and sales opportunities, brand building

and entertainment, all of which add to customer value andexperience

Organisers will continue to succeed in direct proportion totheir ability to identify niche markets for new exhibitions,which are targeted directly for a specific market

The exhibition industry is continually endeavouring to increasethe internationality of its shows in order to enhance theopportunity for exhibitors to increase their export markets

The exhibition segment is taking important steps forward tomeet the demands for sustainability. Action is being taken to

improve performance in waste management andenvironmental issues, adopting new techniques to improverecycling and reduce overall waste

Successful event exhibition formats are being cloned androlled out to regional and international markets

Other sectors of the media mix are recognising the benefits offace-to-face marketing and are investing in the medium tocommunicate with their audiences.

e) INCENTIVE TRAVEL


Incentive travel is a tool used by organisations to motivate theirstaff and/or external sales agents, with the objective of improvingperformance at both individual and corporate levels. This tool offersindividuals or teams the chance to qualify for an exceptional travelexperience, subject to their attaining preset goals.

While corporate organisations routinely offer a range of employeerewards, including vouchers, merchandise and cash bonuses, travelhas been found to be the most effective motivator. It is also themost expensive, with rewards ranging in value from 500 to 5,000per head. Travel rewards are generally used by those industriesproducing a product or service that carries a high profit margin such as cars, computers and financial services. Companies in thesesectors invest accrued profit from sales to fund incentive travelprogrammes, which will, in turn, boost sales.

The earliest recorded incentive travel programme took place in1906, but the industry only became fully established in the 1960s,coinciding with the onset of global tourism. The United States was


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the first user of incentive travel and has remained the strongestmarket ever since.

Companies operating in the automotive, financial services,pharmaceutical and information technology sectors are among the

leading users of outbound (overseas) incentive travel from theUnited Kingdom. Research undertaken among 350 North Americancorporations by International Conference Research Inc in 2006found that, among the top users ofinternationalawardprogrammes, insurance corporations led the way by a substantialmargin, followed by finance, direct selling, automotivemanufacturers/dealers, and computer hardware/softwaremanufacturers.

Economic Benefits

The fact that hotels do not differentiate between conference andincentive travel group bookings, makes it difficult to trackoccupancy levels. However, we do know that incentive groups areconcentrated within the four and five star hotel properties and thatthey account for 5-10% of bedroom revenue in these properties.

London is the most popular UK incentive destination, followed byEdinburgh, Scottish golf resorts and Stratford-upon-Avon. Manylong-haul-originating incentives are based around two centres:

London plus Edinburgh, for example.

In addition to accommodation, incentive participants enjoy topquality entertainment programmes as part of their reward. Theseinclude excursions, theatre trips and lavish dining experiences,often held in unique venues. The wider tourism infrastructurebenefits considerably from these business customers.

The USA remains the largest national buyer of incentive travel,constituting 50% of the overseas market. Other key markets areGermany, France, Italy, Spain and Russia; also long-haul English-speaking markets, such as Australia and the Far East. In the caseof the Far East, the number of participants can be quite large butthe programme often less structured than those held elsewhere.

European companies are likely to operate three or four shortprogrammes per year, in contrast to the one or two programmesoperated by their American counterparts.

The domestic incentive market is difficult to measure accurately,since the reward media are frequently purchased off-the-shelf, in

the form of hotel vouchers, weekend breaks or luxury/adventureexperiences (hot air balloon rides, Formula One race days, etc).


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Nevertheless, a thriving industry exists to service the needs ofcorporate incentive buyers and includes such specialists as vouchercompanies, caterers, creative theming agencies and corporateentertainment companies.

Characteristics of Incentive Travel Programmes

The fulfillment of an incentive programme is the travel experienceitself, but this is preceded by a motivational campaign, beginningwith a launch event. Planning cycles vary depending on theindustry sector of the provider. Approximately a third of incentivecampaigns start six months before the trip takes place; theremaining two thirds start between six and 18 months ahead.

Measurable objectives are set by the incentive providers usuallythe companys sales or marketing director, often working in tandemwith a specialist incentive travel agency. A continuous promotionalcampaign encourages participants to maintain high levels ofperformance throughout the period and the highest achievers willqualify to participate in the reward.

Historically, incentive travel has been experienced by groups ofqualifiers. In recent years, however, there has been an emergingtrend for winners to select the time and sometimes even the

location of their reward, thus turning the reward into a privateholiday with partner and/or family. This trend currently applies toabout five per cent of incentives, but there is no indication that thisfigure is increasing. Employers generally prefer to structure therewards as group experiences, so that the perception of being partof an elite achievers club can be maintained.

Destination Selection

Selection of incentive destinations is based on a number of factors,

including:

Value for money Climate Ease of (travel) access Business links Sophisticated tourism infrastructure The wow factor

There is a slight overlap in perception between conferences andincentives. Some incentives incorporate business meetings, whilesome conferences nowadays have a significant social and leisure


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programme, and are held in highly aspirational locations, makingthem motivational events. The defining line through these blurredboundaries is that participants have to qualify to earn an incentivereward.

The most popular incentive destinations for groups travelling fromthe UK, according to Meetings & Incentive Travel magazinesTrends and Spend Survey 2005 (published May 2006) were Spain,France and Italy as short haul destinations and the USA, SouthAfrica and the United Arab Emirates as long haul destinations. The2004 Survey found that long haul trips lasted on average just over4 days, with short haul trips lasting 3 days. For corporations in theNorth American market (according to International ConferenceResearch Inc), the top international incentive destinations in 2005were, in order: Britain, Italy, Ireland, Spain and France. European

Travel Commission research (2003) among US and Canadiancorporations using incentive travel programmes found that theaverage number of participants on international trips outside NorthAmerica was 116 with an average duration of 4-5 nights.


Incentive travel is a well-established sector of business tourism andfor international markets the UK is one of the most populardestinations.

However, visitor numbers are greatly influenced year-on-year bythe strength of the pound in relation to other currencies and byissues affecting perceptions of security.

Incentive travel programmes increasingly have an educationalelement for the participants. This can involve visits to factories andbusinesses in the same industry sector as that of the awardwinners, team-building programmes, and a conference-type sessionwith an award presentation ceremony and announcements of

corporate plans, designed to encourage the incentive winners toreach future performance targets.

(See also the references to incentive travel in the next section ofthis Briefing on Corporate Events and Corporate Hospitality)


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f) CORPORATE EVENTS AND CORPORATE HOSPITALITY


The corporate events segment covers incentive travel, cliententertainment, staff entertainment, meetings and conferences andso has a clear overlap with some of the other segments describedseparately in this Briefing. However, this section of the Briefing iswritten specifically from the perspective of companies providingspecialist services to the corporate events segment, thuscomplementing information to be found elsewhere.

There is no regular research undertaken to assess the overallvolume and value of the corporate events segment to the UK,

although figures of between 700 million and 1 billion are felt tobe a reasonable estimate by many working in the segment.Information from the British Hospitality Association, based on itsFood and Management Survey, reveals that there are almost 4000support services to the corporate events and corporate hospitalityindustry as part of a catering contract, including cleaning anddomestic services, shops, housekeeping and laundry, but evenextending to services such as fire, waste management, mailroomfacilities and crches. It is estimated that such support services havean annual value of approximately 500 million.

Overall Trends

Some in the industry believe that overseas incentive rewards are inlong-term decline as a motivational tool, although others disputethis. A combination of factors is contributing to this downwardtrend. These include the increased long-haul holiday trafficremoving the cachet of winning trips to far-off places, and thegradual change in motivational practices within certain businesses.Sustainability concerns, security, and pressures of time may also beplaying a part.

The traditional method of rewarding a few top performers toencourage others to aspire to such heights is giving way to abroader strategy of motivating sales teams through inspirationalevents that unite, entertain and reward whole teams. The increasedfinancial burdens created by tax and national insurance implications,added to the growing value placed by executives on quality time athome, are also contributing to a trend towards different types ofmotivational programmes which reach wider audiences.

Client Entertainment


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The relative growth in participation-based events, including motorracing and clay pigeon shooting, that dominated the 1990s has alsoslowed as the novelty of such activities has worn off and companieshave retreated to the safer and more reliable hospitality events.

Hospitality buyers focus on entertaining fewer and more seniorclients with a trend towards greater justification and control ofspend on hospitality.

This increased cost control is often as a result of the procurementpolicies of large organisations, attempting to centralise their buyingpractices in order to monitor spend and improve purchasing. Manyorganisations have created approved supplier lists (of widelyvarying lengths!) as part of this process.

Staff Entertainment

The genuine value of a happy and loyal workforce has not been loston most of the UKs leading businesses. At times of redundancies,the challenge is to strike the right balance between maintainingmorale and avoiding criticism for discretionary spend in a hardmarket.

Outside of the Christmas market, summer fun days involving thewhole family remain popular, but the overall trend is towards rolling

entertainment into conferences and internal communication eventswhere greater value can be achieved.

Research consistently proves that the main motivator for work isnot money, so the value of maintaining a happy workforce shouldnever be overlooked!

Summary

The UK is undoubtedly leading the world in many areas of the live

events industry. It can be proud of its home-grown talents talents that are frequently exported to deliver events across Europeand further afield.

Trends and issues for the Corporate Events and CorporateHospitality Sector


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In general, the corporate events and the corporate Hospitalitymarket remains robust and is exemplified by the successfulreopening of Ascot Racecourse and the return of Royal Ascot to itstraditional home. The opening of the Emirates Stadium (home to

Arsenal FC) also established a new benchmark in facilities andservice that will have implications for other major football clubsseeking to provide a new dimension to their business. The furorethat surrounds the delay in opening the new Wembley Stadium willensure that, when it does open, the market will be very curious toget a glimpse of the final product.

Away from the sporting arena, those organisers offering activitydays, team building events, treasure hunts and corporate fun daysand the like have had to respond to the impact of huge events such

as the Football World Cup in 2006 and The Rugby World Cup in2007. There is no doubt that the attraction of this sort of highprofile event tends to divert budgets away from those agenciesoffering participatory events and activities.Whilst corporate hospitality continues to be the preferred way ofbuilding client relationships, it is a segment of the market thatdepends on a growing economy and any downturn usually has animmediate impact. This is, to some extent, characterised by theextravagant spending seen in restaurants, bars and on hospitality

events that has followed the recent results of city financial firms.This also translates on a more strategic level to budgets beingassigned for corporate group entertaining. As long as the economicbubble does not burst, the market will remain buoyant.

At the same time, corporate buyers are increasingly keen to bookparticipative packages, rather than those in which guests merelywatch from the sidelines. There is no doubt that events are nowseen as a powerful communication medium that can changeperceptions, attitudes and behaviours and create genuine brand

experiences.

Increasingly, there is a need to match the experience with theaudience and organisers who do not seek to discover participantpreferences at the time they are planning a corporate event orhospitality activity, are adopting a hit or miss approach that has asignificant risk of failure. So forward-thinking hosts are looking todevise a range of hospitality opportunities that match differingguest profiles.

In common with the rest of the B2B sector, corporate events andcorporate hospitality is increasingly being required to prove its


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worth with client companies under pressure to demonstrate returnon investment. The challenge now facing the sector is to findappropriate methods to measure and evaluate the effectiveness ofevents being organised. At the same time, clients are looking forinnovation and creativity with an emphasis on participation and,

where events are of a more passive nature, they are looking forexclusivity and style.

g) OUTDOOR EVENTS


Outdoor events have taken place in the UK since time immemorial,but the first real information on such events, jousting tournaments

and village fairs, for example, developed from the times of theCrusades in the 11th and 12th centuries. Nowadays, although not allfalling within the strict parameters of business tourism, high profileoutdoor events cover a breadth of activity from major festivals(such as Edinburgh International Festival), music events (e.g.Glastonbury), agricultural shows, sporting and charity eventsthrough to small village and craft events. From the beginning,outdoor events have drawn large gatherings whether local, nationalor international; more so than ever today, the visitor from abroad isattracted to a myriad of events in the UK, many of them being

steeped in tradition and history.

The world of outdoor events has developed into a highlyprofessional and quality standard industry made up of localauthorities, show organisers, event management companies,promoters, venue owners together with suppliers of equipment andservices, entertainment agencies, consultants and practitioners ingeneral.

Little research into the value of the segment has been undertakenbut a few years ago the National Outdoor Events Association(NOEA) carried out a survey and conservatively estimated that theoutdoor events industry had an annual turnover of up to 1 billion.

There are probably some 5000 main suppliers of equipment andservice

Business Tourism in Britain

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