A look at the meeting industry based on statistics collected by Meeting Professionals International, an educational, technological and peer-interaction resource in the meeting industry.
Overall
PBN Branded Content
Rhode Island's Market Has Changed. Developers, Builders, Investors and Sellers Must Change With It.
By Emilio DiSpirito IV License Partner | Engel & Völkers Oceanside Leader | The DiSpirito…
Learn More
- Overall there is an expected 9 percent increase in the number of meetings to be
held in 2001. Associations, which typically plan fewer but larger meetings, will
plan 5 percent more, while corporations will increase the number by almost 15
percent. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey) - The total number of meetings held in 1999, including corporate, association and convention meetings, was 1,021,500, an increase of four percent over 1998. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- An increase in regional and U.S. meetings should be expected in 2001, while there may be a slight decrease in the number of international meetings. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey)
- Meeting industry expenditures in 1999 totaled $40.2 billion, a four-percent drop over 1998. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report.)
- The total number of meeting attendees in 1999 was 78.9 million, down one percent from the previous year. (Meetings and Convention’s 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Downtown hotels are the number one site for holding meetings, followed by resorts and airport hotels. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey)
- The average lead time for planning meetings with more than 5,000 attendees is more than two years, while small meetings (with fewer than 50 attendees) usually require a six-month lead time. For meetings with 50 to 500 attendees a one-year lead-time is normal, and meetings with 500 to 5,000 attendees are planned for approximately two years. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey)
- Canada continues to be the first choice for organizations that conduct international meetings. The Caribbean, Mexico, England and Germany follow in popularity. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey)
- The Internet remains the most important communication vehicle for marketing meetings. Ninety-two percent consider it important for that purpose. Direct mail and e-mail blasts are considered important in marketing meetings by 85 percent. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey)
- Return on Investment (ROI) is still important to the meeting professional. “Finishing at or under budget” and “meeting revenue/direct expenses and overhead costs” are the most important measurement tools. “Meeting the expectations of senior management” is also very important — especially for corporate planners. Surveys and evaluations are other important tools used to measure ROI. (MPI’s 2001 Meeting Outlook Survey)
- The average compensation for U.S. meeting planners is $54,613, a 16 percent increase over the average reported in 1998. In the Northeast, meeting planners earn an average $58,146; in the West, $57,136; in the Midwest, $51,650; and in the South, $51,164. The average compensation for MPI international planners now stands at $56,143. The 2000 average salary for Canada planners is $39,019. (The Meeting Professional)
Corporate Meeting Professionals
- The total number of corporate meetings held in 1999 was 835,700. (Meetings &
Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report) - Corporate meeting expenditures totaled $10.2 billion. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The breakdown of corporate meeting expenditures: 58 percent spent on hotels, food and associated costs; 19 percent on air transportation; and eight percent on speakers, entertainment A/V equipment, etc. Six percent was spent on ground transportation; two percent on third-party fees, such as site selection, housing services, etc.; and seven percent on miscellaneous expenses. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The total number of corporate meeting attendees in 1999 was 51 million. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The top meeting cities for corporate meetings in 1999, and the percentage of planners who held meetings there were: Chicago, 25 percent; Las Vegas, 19 percent; Orlando, 17 percent; Atlanta, 15 percent; and San Francisco, 11 percent. The top states were: California, 37 percent; Florida, 31 percent; Illinois, 27 percent, Nevada, 21 percent; and Texas, 20 percent. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Corporate planners spent the majority of their budgets (58 percent) on hotels and food at their 1999 meetings. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Despite the trend toward outsourcing, 88 percent of corporate planners worked in-house in 1999. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- High-level responsibilities: 82 percent of corporate planners selected the meeting facility, 75 percent chose the destination, 72 percent planned entertainment and social functions, 63 percent set the budget, and 62 percent planned the agenda. Fifty-nine (59) percent identified objectives, a task only 43 percent performed in 1997. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Fifty-two percent of corporate planners are female and 48 percent are male, with an average age of 47. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The average salary in 2000 for corporate meeting planners is $56,120. (The Meeting Professional)
- Meetings are fulfilling most attendees’ needs. 70% are highly satisfied with the outcome. Management meeting attendees are slightly less satisfied than other meeting attendees management (65%), sales (75%), education (72%). (MPI Foundation’s “Making Meetings Work-An Analysis of Corporate Meetings”)
- Most attendees are satisfied with the meeting process. 85% believe that meetings are properly “organized and managed.” (MPI Foundation’s “Making Meetings Work-An Analysis of Corporate Meetings”)
Association Meeting Professionals
- Advertisement -
- Association meeting expenditures in 1999 totaled $13.7 billion. (Meetings &
Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report) - The total number of association meetings held in 1999 was 174,200. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The total number of association meeting attendees in 1999 was 15.6 million. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The bulk of association meeting expenditures, 33 percent, was on food and beverage, followed by 30 percent to hotels, and 12 percent to speakers, entertainment and A/V equipment. The other main expenditures were on ground transportation (five percent), third-party fees (two percent), and miscellaneous (seven percent.) (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report.)
In 1999 association members spent a total of $26.7 billion to attend events, a five percent decrease. The average attendee expenditure per domestic association meeting rose from $744 to $789. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Thirty-four percent of association planners arranged guest programs at their meetings. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- More than 70 percent of association meeting planners named cost as the most important factor in the selection of meeting facilities. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Sixty-two percent of association planners are female and the average age is 45. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- In 1999, associations held 61,800 educational meetings, 40,300 board meetings, 33,900 technical meetings and 29,200 regional/local meetings. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- Associations held 11,700 conventions in 1999 at a cost of $2.1 billion, an 11 percent increase. (Meetings & Conventions’ 2000 Meetings Market Report)
- The average salary for association meeting professionals in 2000 is $46,539. (The Meeting Professional)
Independent Meeting Professionals
- The average salary for independent planners in 2000 is $60,230. (The Meeting
Professional) - Seventy percent of independent planners plan management meetings, 63 percent plan conventions, 62 percent plan training meetings, 46 percent plan sales meetings, and 36 plan incentive travel programs. (Successful Meetings’ The State of the Industry Report)
- Forty-one percent of independent meeting planners plan corporate meetings most often. Fifteen percent focus primarily on incentive events, and 14 percent identify special events as the type of meeting they most often plan. (MPI’s 2000 Independent Meeting Planners Survey)
- Thirty percent of independent planners orchestrate meetings at resorts, 19 percent at downtown hotels, and 17 percent at convention facilities. Other facilities used by independent meeting planners are (15 percent) conference centers, and (14 percent) airport hotels. (MPI’s 2000 Independent Meeting Planners Survey)
