Trends for Events and Meetings in 2015
According to the recent 2015 Meeting and Events Forecast by CWT there will be an enormous potential to create the attendee experience in a more rationalized and effective way in 2015. This will among other things reached by the use of technology tools such as specialized management software, social media and dedicated event apps.
One of the trends for the following year will be hybrid and virtual events. Those kinds of events offer the benefit of reaching a larger audience by mixing live and virtual elements and their number is expected to increase a lot.
Further, there has been recognized an increased need for technology solutions within the meetings and events industry over the past year. They are used to reduce costs on the one hand and to increase efficiency on the other hand. Moreover, technology solutions are also fast becoming a main part of RFPs and meeting planners are increasingly looking for global companies which can support the provision of worldwide oversight for improved compliance. The number of events that are offering online attendee registration has risen a lot during the past years – a fact that is in line with meeting planners’ pursuit of end-to-end management.
According to the forecast, also social media will be an important part of events in the future: they will increasingly be integrated into event strategies. Live tweeting and the use of Facebook for an improving communication are becoming more and more common. Integrating social media in an event strategy is an easy and cost-effective way to optimize and increase attendee engagement.
Finally, a big trend in 2015 will be event apps. They are mainly used by larger and global organizations and have the objective of replacing printed materials and integrating social media platforms for the share of content. It is expected that those kinds of apps will be used as an essential component of meetings and events in the future.
Event planners in Italy will as well more and more incorporate hybrid events into their event strategies. Event strategies will include video conferences, Skype calls and other virtual elements into the actual live event. Italy’s locations are optimally equipped with modern technology – and are thereby providing the possibility of using recent trends in order to reach a wider audience, to encourage a greater attendee engagement and to make the attendee experience more effective.