It’s a cold, hard winter for the meetings and events business. Things are just plain rough out there. According to a survey by the industry trade group Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and American Express that was released last month, seven percent of business meetings already scheduled for 2009 have been canceled, and that number may be an underestimate. We are hearing from our clients and vendors that cancellations often outnumber actual shows, and the recent economic indicators show no sign of relief.
And while meeting/event production and staging is a large and vital industry serving all levels of business, the press is often unaware of the value of the non-outsourceable jobs this industry represents to the economy and the important services we provide every day to support commerce and encourage economic recovery.
According to the U.S. Travel Association (USTA), business-related travel generates 2.4 million American jobs, $244 billion in spending and $39 billion in tax revenue at the federal, state and local level. What percentage of that spending does meeting production and staging represent? If it is just two percent, then our unheralded segment of the industry easily contributes over $4 billion to the U.S. economy. And the stimulus from our work reaches far outside the meeting room or convention floor.
Companies who choose to meet, hold events, and attend trade shows create jobs for workers in the airline and hotel industries, for union workers at theatres, convention centers and scene shops, in the restaurant and hospitality industries and beyond. The meetings and events business also supports the production companies who envision and create the communications content used to sell products and increase productivity, and the staging companies who must continually invest in trained personnel and the latest video, audio, and lighting equipment that is required to put on a meeting. And many classes of workers are involved throughout the production process, including a disproportionate number of independent contractors and small businesses, the fastest growing parts of the economy.
The recent media storm about a Wells Fargo meeting in Las Vegas caused its cancellation. Politicians and the media created a frenzy around a company that had chosen to invite their most productive employees to a meeting and recognition event, resulting in the cancellation of the program. In fact, Wells Fargo went on to cancel all of their employee recognition events for 2009. This is now an all-too-common problem, and many companies are now canceling meetings well in advance for no other reason than to avoid bad press and government scrutiny.
Our industry must go on the offense on behalf of our clients and talk about the return on investment that a meeting provides. Compare the impact of spending on meetings versus the cost of a television spot. A 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl costs $3 million. Chase Bank took TARP money and advertised on TV during the Super Bowl. So why isn’t the media outraged about that? Three million dollars could buy a whole series of meetings and make a solid contribution toward boosting corporate productivity, employee morale, and the recovery of the economy. But apparently a double standard exists in the media where advertising is okay, but face-to-face communications to employees or clients is not.
I am holding a vision that the current mood surrounding corporate meetings will start to right itself by summer, just enough to allow companies to again invest money in face-to-face communications with their field staff and customers. Companies will have products to sell and the survival of brands will be at stake. It is difficult or impossible to get people motivated or reward them over a conference call or a streaming Internet feed. That is just the way it is. Research shows that people need connection. They need to hear the story from their leaders — in person. But the mood will not change and the herd will not turn without a concerted campaign to reinforce our benefits to clients, politicians, and the press.
Our industry must make a compelling case to politicians and news media that business conferences and events are part of maintaining and rebuilding the economy, not indulgences that squander money and produce few tangible results. Meetings and events produce measurable ROI. When the going gets tough and companies downsize, there is no more appropriate time to reach out across a company to present a vision for recovery and growth. Employees need to believe in their company — they need to stay connected.
Those employees and sales forces need to know — even more they need to believe that their firm is on the right track and that there will continue to be a pipeline of new products to sell, and support behind the sales force and the products. Cutting back is a serious message that employees and sales forces take to heart. And the results show on the bottom line, and in lack of employee retention. And slowing sales do not support the recovery of our economy. If businesses want to communicate and motivate sales forces or market their products to clients, the proven best approach is face-to-face communications. Anything less is just a low-budget attempt to achieve the same goals using superficial means. Clients know nothing is as effective as bringing people together, but in tough times, they often choose to act as if this has not been proven over time, or they are simply afraid to be seen spending money. Nobody wants to be judged in the press or by shareholders for “extravagance in the time of layoffs”, even though every company needs to communicate to survive.
A carefully coordinated industry response must be crafted to both defend those companies who choose to hold conferences and incentive events, and to support the large and diverse segments of the economy who depend on meeting/staging and business travel industries for their livelihood. Only then will there be the potential for a large and powerful voice of moderation to rise above the din of politicians and media taking shots at our clients and our livelihood. The efforts of MPI and USTA are beginning to reach out to the media and government, and the petition at www.keepamericameeting.com is also making slow progress. But unless we act quickly and forcefully, we may not see the effects of these for quite some time.
I support the intentions of the leading industry associations, but their efforts still seem passive. I think we can and should do more. Which industry association should the staging business should turn to in times like these? ESTA? InfoComm? Does anyone really represent our interests? Should our industry join MPI and USTA efforts to get the word out, or is that enough? Who will you choose to stand up for us?
How will you sell the government, the news media, and corporations on the fact that companies who use meetings or events to market, motivate, and communicate are not only smart, but also patriotic and providing a service to the recovery of the economy? And where will you begin? Do your elected representatives know what you think and how these issues affect your livelihood?
We can’t wait any longer for others to galvanize our industry into action. Stand up, and demand that our industry organizations represent your interests, and write to your congressman today, unless, that is, you are happy with the way things are now.
Standby…..and GO!
Floyd Dilman is the owner of Event Engineering, Chicago (www.eventengineering.com).
