With many sectors of the economy having enjoyed an upswing for more than two years now, spending on meetings is keeping pace as events are growing discernibly more lavish.
The heightened expenditures are coming in a variety of areas, from food and beverage to audiovisual and signage to the general ambiance of the meeting. "No question, meeting budgets are larger today than they were about a year and a half ago," says Ty Helms, senior vice president of sales at Hyatt Hotels. "What we're seeing is that a lot of organizations are trying to improve the overall quality of their events," adds David Weil, senior director of convention and trade show services for association management firm SmithBucklin. "Also, attendees are looking for more of an experience. Things that were considered extravagant in the past are now basic expectations of meetings." For example, he notes that rear-screen projection has become a standard element at most meetings.
In addition to associations, sponsors are laying out more cash as well, according to Weil. "They're spending on opportunities for their companies to feel unique at conferences, to get more exposure, and to give more value to attendees," he says. "But while we're seeing more money being spent, we're seeing more total sponsorship opportunities too."
Many associations are feeling the need to compete with increasing corporate meeting budgets, as corporate-meeting attendees who also attend association conventions bring with them heightened expectations. "We need to make sure we're raising the bar," Weil says.
According to Jay Roseman, vice president of corporate meeting solutions for New York City-based American Express Business Travel, corporations are making typically short meetings even shorter, but spending more on food and beverage. And typically medium-length to longer meetings have grown longer, Roseman says, causing an overall increase in spending. "We think spending per attendee is actually trending up, because of longer stays," Roseman says. "Spending is getting back to where it was before September 11, 2001."
Carol Gillenwater, president of The Woodlands, TX-based Corporate Meetings Unlimited, says she has expanded her client base, as companies that are faring better financially have become willing to hire a meeting planner. "They will now pay more for travel to and from the meeting venue, food and beverage, audiovisual production, entertainment, more elaborate printed materials, spouse programs, and recreational activities," Gillenwater says.
What's more, some groups are booking more knowledgeable, experienced, dynamic—and thus more expensive—speakers than they did in the past, Gillenwater notes.