INTRO: Can you describe IBTM World in four words?
Culture, community, inspiration, results.
Q1: What makes your trade show stand out from the competition?
As the longest-running meetings and events trade show in the world, at IBTM World, you can make a year’s worth of business connections in just three days. As we approach our 37th year, the event remains the most anticipated date in the annual business events calendar – one that provides unparalleled opportunities for business connections, networking and learning.
This year, we expect over 3,500 total buyers, meaning that each of our 2,500 exhibitors can look forward to holding up to 46 quality meetings during the show. Our goal is to beat last year’s record of 100,000 connections! What makes IBTM World stand out from the competition is our thorough approval criteria for Hosted Buyers, meaning that only those with a genuine ability and intent to do business are admitted.
What’s more, IBTM World truly is a smart event. The technology and tools we offer our attendees ensure a high return on investment for exhibitors’ budgets and Hosted Buyers’ valuable time. Not least of these tools is our unique matchmaking platform, which creates bespoke diaries for every Hosted Buyer based on their needs. I am very pleased to share that we are also opening the platform to Visitor Buyers this year, who each year express the need to hold meetings.
Q2: What are your further steps and vision to develop your event?
Each year, we review every element of IBTM World to ensure that we’re providing the very best experience for attendees and helping them achieve their business goals. In recent years, the shift to working from home and our more isolated personal and working lives prompted the development of IBTM’s #culturecreates campaign. The campaign aimed to highlight the importance of the business events sector globally in helping to shape culture and the world in which we live. This year, we evolve the campaign to #culturecreators – focusing on the event planners themselves, who are crucial to the future of business.
As for how we do this, the meetings and networking taking place on the show floor are obviously key. It is also important that we give buyers the tools and education they need to be the catalyst for growth. That is why we’ve completely redesigned the conference and features programme to reflect the changing needs of attendees and ensure it is as inclusive, insightful, and inspirational as possible.
Q3: Our research has shown that exhibitors find the quality of hosted buyers most important. How do you ensure the quality of hosted buyers at your event, and what is your guarantee for the exhibitors?
The success is in the detail. We have a thorough three-step approach to ensuring the quality and success of the Hosted Buyer Programme:
Quality: We have a team dedicated to finding the most valuable buyers year-round. Nobody is approved to be a Hosted Buyer until they’ve provided three references from suppliers, proving that they have budget and spending power.
Research: Once a Hosted Buyer has registered, we carry out detailed research to understand the solutions they’re looking for.
Technology: Our market-leading tech means that we can take their interests and apply sophisticated matchmaking to get them in front of the exhibitor with the right offering for them.
“Following IBTM World 2022, 89 per cent of exhibitors said IBTM World is their must-attend event.”
Q4: Will your event stay the same size, or do you have plans to expand it?
As always, our primary aim with IBTM World is to deliver high-quality one-to-one business meetings and create a fantastic experience for attendees. However, growth is a direct representation of recovery in the meetings and events industry, so of course, we welcome it! This year, we will be joined by multiple new exhibitors, including Jakarta Convention Bureau, Choice Hotels, and Backstage Production Group, as well as Hosted Buyers from new organisations such as Forbes, Dell Tech, and Kuoni Global Travel.
Q5: We liked to draw parallels with the past during the coronavirus crisis. What have we learned from the past to make our industry better and more responsible towards the environment and attendees?
The pandemic prompted many of us to examine how we do things and to decide what we wanted to keep and what we wanted to change for the better. The enforced slowdown also made us re-evaluate how we all spend our time and money. We know that post-pandemic, attendees are likely to make stricter choices about which events they go to.
So we are working smarter than ever before to make sure that buyers’ time away from their desks is delivering a return on investment and that we’re delivering on our promise to inspire, empower, and make their workload lighter for the year ahead by hosting a year’s worth of business conversations in just three days.
And it’s not all about business – in recognition of the importance of wellbeing, especially at busy trade shows like IBTM World, the wellbeing hub has re-branded to ‘ReFuel’; a zen-like pod that allows attendees time and space to relax and recharge their physical and mental batteries.
Q6: Which event in the meetings industry do you see as the benchmark and why?
Following IBTM World 2022, 89 per cent of exhibitors said IBTM World is their must-attend event, and 81 per cent said they found the right buyers for them at the event. Our reputation is all about delivering tangible results. Our goal each year is to outdo the previous edition and continue to deliver on our promise. So really, we’re in fierce competition with ourselves!
Q7: What are your thoughts on the so-called table-top concept, now prevalent among B2B events? Is this enough for an immersive experience that will satisfy attendees? What are the benefits of such a concept compared to classic exhibitor stands at large trade shows?
For some events, the table-top format can be effective, but at IBTM World, we run an exhibitor stand model, and we believe this gives our exhibitors the best opportunity to creatively promote their brands, as well as give our attendees the best immersive experience. Because of this format, it really does feel like you are visiting the whole world in three days as you walk the hall and take in all the incredible displays.
Q8: Can you name one core problem you believe the global meetings industry should tackle together?
One core challenge that the global meetings industry should collectively address is sustainability. Considering the industry’s complex supply chains and interconnectedness, it is only by working together as an industry that we will be able to reduce our impact. RX has founded the Net Zero Carbon Events pledge to make our company, our shows and the wider events industry net zero. We commit to being Net Zero by 2040 and to make a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
In 2023, we will publish our pathway to net zero, setting out our carbon reduction strategy with key milestones for all our shows. We will be able to release more details on this in due course.
Learn more about IBTM World here.
