Since our inception in 2003, our team at ConventionPlanit.com has kept our ear to the ground to understand the current issues that impact meeting professionals. It goes without saying that the impact of COVID-19 on the meetings industry is the most pressing issue of the moment.
ConventionPlanit.com recently held its 10th Annual Advisory Council Meeting (via conference call), which proved to be a platform for industry professionals to discuss their own challenges and share ideas to navigate the global pandemic.
The Council members shared that some of their meetings have been cancelled, some are going virtual, and some are being rescheduled in 2021, depending on the market sector. They expressed frustration over inconsistent policies among hotels with deposit refunds for cancelling or rescheduling meetings. The Council members recommend waiting to cancel a meeting until local or state government has issued an order to increase the likelihood of receiving a reimbursement. Looking ahead, the planners advise to be prepared to provide justification to travel. There will be fear in meeting face-to-face for many and getting back to ‘normal’ will be a slow process.
The meeting included a presentation from Mary Ann Pierce, Founder & CEO of MAP Digital, a leader in the virtual events space for the past 20 years. Mary Ann shared tips on delving into virtual events and answered questions from Council members. (Scroll down to find more from Mary Ann in this newsletter!)
The Advisory Council suggests being strategic when pushing content out digitally and focus on engaging and collaborating with partners to make the content experience-based. Think about what your strategic goals are versus getting content out for the sake of it. Many people are distracted, so less is more.
We asked the Advisory Council when they think they would be receptive to seeing advertising from suppliers, and they suggested when they are able to go back to their offices. In the meantime, relationships with suppliers are more important than ever, and they appreciate personal reach outs to see how they are doing.
The Advisory Council also weighed in on what information they would like to see added to ConventionPlanit.com from suppliers, and they suggested COVID-19 updates displayed on listing profiles. With so much unknown, the more information they can access, the better. Check out the ConventionPlanit.com website under Notices & Special Offers for more.
