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Photo: Proske GmbH

the restart phase for the MICE industry

Now in the second year of the pandemic, five top trends are on the horizon that will play a key role in the restart phase for the MICE industry. René Proske, owner and managing director of Proske GmbH, has summarised the trends.

Didactics are changing

The path is moving away from classic event formats. The event content no longer dictates the format; instead, the format is determined by the session content and the respective goal. Whereas pre-Corona meetings often were dominated by frontal lectures and occupied a larger time window due to travel expenses, this will change in the direction of multi-stage short meetings with a thematic focus. This prediction is shared, for example, by Professor Stefan Luppold, Head of the Department of Trade Fair, Congress and Event Management at the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University.

Hybrid is the trend of the times

Hybrid events have been attracting a great deal of interest for some time now, and the pandemic has given their popularity an additional boost. The number of hybrid events has increased significantly in recent months and continues to grow, as does the acceptance of participants for this format. The combination of classic face-to-face events and digital technologies is always a good idea when a wider reach needs to be generated and new target groups need to be acquired or included. For formats such as conferences and congresses, there are opportunities for growth here, as this can result in the integration of previously non-convertible customer groups.

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Photo: Marko Delbello Ocepek

Innovation fills the impact vacuum between live and virtual events

With the integration of innovative technologies and methods such as AI and data science, the user/attendee journey can be personalized. This can sustainably compensate for the impact vacuum that has developed between live and virtual events.

Commercial potential is growing and events are becoming a point of sale

Technical innovations make it possible to integrate event modules/event formats into the classic customer journey of strategic marketing communication. An AI-based event platform is a data-driven communication channel that is comparable to online, search engine and performance marketing or social media. An event becomes an integral part of the point of sale.

Focus on Involvement
Another area of focus will be on tools, apps and methods. They support the networking of participants in virtual and hybrid event formats and lead directly to active participation and interaction.

Conclusion

Conventional MICE aspects such as logistics and/or travel are losing importance. Content aspects such as strategic communication and digital transformation now dominate. This will catapult the event industry forward as stakeholders become simultaneously more focused, analytical, and strategic to achieve, consolidate, and optimize their goals and objectives.

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