Trend H: Budget and price
Having seen that some business events can be held virtually, participants will need to justify the costs of attending in person when the virtual option is available. This places new demands on organisers and brings both opportunities and challenges for the industry.
Inflation and continued uncertainty in market developments are affecting customers' budgets and their willingness to hold large, extravagant physical meetings and events. This has an impact on the physical events of the future and may, for example, result in some larger corporate events and congresses being shortened and compressed. This can give an advantage to destinations with good accessibility; in particular, destinations with early morning arrivals will be well positioned in the international competition.
An increased focus on reducing costs may also affect the number of activities outside the venue and evening events. These savings can make sense for the organiser and help balance the budget, but they can also weaken the overall value proposition for participants and reduce their motivation to attend in person. It is therefore important that the entire value chain works together with organisers both to keep prices down and to develop attractive, competitive meeting products that increase value creation for participants.