Planners Predict Moderate Growth in 2018

Planners are predicting moderate growth in 2018 thanks to favourable business conditions, according to the 2018 Winter Edition of Meetings Outlook™, Meeting Professional International’s (MPI) quarterly report on industry trends and outlooks.

The report’s findings are based on a survey of meeting professionals on MPI’s Business Research Panel conducted by research firm Association Insights, as well as a random selection of MPI members. The survey consists of a short series of quantitative questions related to the economy and a qualitative question regarding the individual’s professional outlook.

The most recent survey revealed that 62 percent of respondents predict favourable business conditions, with a 2.1 percent growth expected over the next year.

Other key findings include:

• 44.7 percent of respondents cite “most safe and secure” as the most important factor in destination or venue selection.
• attendance at live and virtual events is expected to grow by 2.2 percent and 2.6 percent respectively.
• despite slightly more people expressing pessimism about meetings and events one year after the U.S. presidential election, the overall statistical finding of respondents’ professional outlook as it relates to President Donald Trump is slightly positive due to a high percentage of “firmly optimistic” (10.2 percent) responses. Only 3.9 percent of respondents identified a “firmly pessimistic” outlook.
• an increased focus on personalizing the user experience through technology and data collection.

Meetings Outlook is developed in partnership with MGM Resorts International and suported in partnership with the IMEX Group. The full version of the report is available online at www.mpiweb.org/meetingsoutlook.

About MPI

Meeting Professionals International is the largest meeting and event industry association worldwide. With more than 90 chapters (eight in Canada) and clubs in 19 countries, it has a global community of 60,000 meeting and event professionals including more than 17,000 engaged members. The organization provides innovative and relevant education, networking opportunities and business exchanges. It also acts as a prominent voice for the promotion and growth of the business events industry.