According to a new survey released by Meetings Mean Business (MMB), 91 percent of small business owners plan to maintain or increase their travel budgets for meetings in 2017 when compared to 2016. Further, 96 percent feel that face-to-face meetings show a positive return on investment. "Small business owners are careful about spending their dollars, so this continued investment in face-to-face meetings illustrates just how crucial they are," says Michael Dominguez, senior vice president and chief sales officer for MGM Resorts International and co-chair of MMB.
Over two-thirds (77 percent) of small business owners reported that their meetings yield a healthy return on investment and 87 percent said the ability to meet in-person has a meaningful impact on building relationships. "MMB's survey demonstrates that small business owners who connect with current and potential customers face-to-face build stronger partnerships that ultimately grow their bottom line," says Richard Harper, executive vice president at HelmsBriscoe and co-chair of MMB.
The survey shows that small business owners use face-to-face meetings to conduct important business activities such as building partnerships and negotiating. "As the founder and CEO of a small business, I can vouch for the fact that investing in face-to-face meetings provides a return on investment and helps grow the bottom line," said Dan Berger, CEO of Social Tables, a Washington, DC-based small business. "Meetings have helped Social Tables expand our customer base, enhance our software, and ultimately grow our business."
Survey respondents also found in-person meetings beneficial in improving productivity and advancing professional development. Over half consider in-person training and continued education classes a priority.
The survey was commissioned by MMB and garnered a total of 300 respondents representing 24 industries, with an additional oversample of 100 small business owners in the technology industry. For more about the survey, visit meetingsmeanbusiness.com.