Its year-long partnership with Mexico Meetings Network (MMN) — an English language media platform for meetings and group tourism in Mexico — has helped increase the flow of group meetings and events business to destinations south of the border, meetings technology company Cvent announced today.
"The Mexico meetings and events industry accounts for $18.1 billion in spending each year, and yet there is still a wealth of meeting and convention venues that remain largely untapped," said Chuck Ghoorah, Cvent's co-founder and executive vice president of sales and marketing. "With this partnership, we're coupling MMN's extensive knowledge of the Mexico meetings market with Cvent's vast audience of meeting planner users to put Mexico on the map as a premier destination for meetings and events."
Cvent, which provides cloud-based event management, venue selection and web survey solutions, has been working with MMN to provide CVBs and venues in Mexico with integrated online marketing packages that showcase Mexico cities and properties to meeting planners. It says it has already seen an increase in the adoption of the Cvent Supplier Network — it's online marketplace for meeting venues — as a result of its partnership with MMN, as evidenced by a 40 percent growth in the number of Mexican venues that have profiles on the marketplace.
Additionally, the company reports, it has seen a 24.65 percent year-over-year increase in the number of unique RFPs sent to Mexico through the Cvent Supplier Network, even though "Mexico's tourism industry has faced challenges in 2011 — with several Mexican news sources reporting that international arrivals to some destinations are down by 10 percent or more."
"To see a growth in the volume of request for proposals coming to our country represents a vote of confidence for Mexico by international meeting planners," said Oscar Garcia, general manager of the Leon, Mexico CVB and national president of Mexico's Destination Marketing Association.
Added MMN Co-founder and President Margot Lee Shetterly, "Mexico offers outstanding value and variety for international meeting planners. MMN and Cvent have a long-term commitment to grow this market; and through this partnership, Mexican destinations are able to offer international planners a world-class quality of communications and RFP response."