A survey conducted by Biz Events Asia and communications agency, Zadro, reveals top concerns, interests, destination preferences, and more in Asia Pacific.
Among the survey respondents, more than half (55 percent) represent the female demographic, with 68 percent of total respondents being in the business events industry for at least five years.
With Asia Pacific being a diverse region for business events and incentives with locations set to inspire, stimulate, relax and rejuvenate delegates, the results indicate the most popular countries for events in the past 12 months were Singapore, Australia and Malaysia. This partly encompasses domestic bookings from the high number of respondents from each of these countries.
When booking events in the region, industry insiders indicated overall experience provided, cost and location as the three most important variables in the decision-making process; outranking ease of access, reputation and technical capabilities.
Thailand has been identified as the preferred destination for groups of 200 sales executives, indicating smaller groups prefer the paradise escapes, while the region’s commercial hubs (Singapore and Malaysia) attract large groups of 1,000 or more due to the overall experience and facilities.
“There are a couple of reasons why I believe these countries are leading the industry – the first is their strong infrastructure, and the second is their central geographic location in the Asia Pacific region. Many companies have their regional headquarters in Singapore, and both Malaysia and Singapore have excellent infrastructure to support small and large scale events, including logistics capabilities for readily available audio-visual support and production build-ups, as well as venue capabilities in terms of event know-how.
On the other hand, Thailand has also been, and will likely continue to be, a popular destination for events. The country’s rich culture and diverse offerings for both corporate and incentive projects, and the lower costs compared with markets like Australia and Singapore, make Thailand an attractive destination,” said Petrina Goh, Business Development Manager, CWT Meetings & Events.
“For a while now, we’ve also been seeing Vietnam and Cambodia coming up as popular destinations for many corporate clients. Both countries have invested heavily in building their infrastructure to support larger events, with international hotel chains coming in to offer a greater choice of venues. With both countries’ tourism boards actively promoting Vietnam and Cambodia as low-cost, culturally rich and diverse destinations, we’ve seen a considerable increase in interest in both markets,” added Goh.
Cost, location and overall experience provided have been indicated as the current top three factors considered when organising an event. In the fast-paced world we live in, how do we predict the changing factors that will influence our event decision-making in the next five years? Lucky for us, there isn't too much adjustment in our motivators as expected. Cost is likely to remain the primary influence in event decisions, while location and accessibility will become less important.
The changing global environment, political instability and safety are the three issues currently affecting travel in the business events industry in Asia Pacific, while a shortage of skills, language proficiency and lack of government support were also recognised as barriers to the industry’s future growth.
From the rise of technological innovation to the unchartered territories of global instability, here are the upcoming trends industry leaders are expecting to see surge:
To strengthen the industry and prepare for the future, here are the key changes the industry would like to see:
Even though 49 percent have revealed that more needs to be done for destination bureaux in the region to strengthen their relationship with event businesses and provide more support, it is encouraging to note that more than 60 percent of respondents agree that the business events industry in Asia Pacific is going from strength to strength, is innovative, and quick to take up new technologies, while more than 70 percent has expressed a strong belief that the industry has a growing importance in their countries, and is well-supported by wider industry associations.
Read the full infographic report on business event trends in Asia Pacific here.
800 business events strategists convened in New York City for the PCMA Education Conference held at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel this week and were introduced to immersive learning experiences through six unique locations across the city.(read more)
Tourism Australia’s brand new website dedicated to business events will give event planners and incentive travel organisers an enhanced experience and direct access to representative contacts, products, inspiration, and more.(read more)
The two-day event taking place at Songdo ConvensiA, Incheon, will offer the opportunity to discover Korea MICE Bureau’s expanded event support programme, visit local event venues and attractions in Incheon, Seoul and Gyeonggi province firsthand, and more.(read more)
Singapore – Nu Skin Japan brought 250 of its regional sales leaders for a well-deserved travel incentive to Singapore(read more)
Direct from IMEX America 2016 in Las Vegas –Timo Kiuru, CEO of The Unthinkable, started the knowledge session with a statement, “Welcome to the death of event experiential marketing.” Kiuru, recognised by Connect Corporate Magazine as...(read more)
You might be doing it wrongly if you have been offering product details that fail to go beyond venue spaces and capabilities. (read more)
Singapore – Set to open in the second quarter of 2017, the 222-room Sofitel Singapore City Centre has announced the appointment of Freddy See as Director of Sales & Marketing. (read more)
Singapore – A new Helsinki-based “hotel without bedrooms” event venue concept has made its way into Singapore. Here’s a sneak peek inside Huone Events Hotel before its February 23 opening and why it is bound to disrupt the local meetings industry.(read more)
What do Malaysia and Singapore have in common in the way they market themselves and stay ahead as business event destinations? (read more)
Singapore – October is set to be the busiest business events month as Marina Bay Sands welcomes the highest number of major events in a single month since its opening in 2010.(read more)
Singapore – HotelAsia, one of Food&HotelAsia’s pioneer specialised trade shows will feature an impressive host of brands, showcase new equipment and technology and unveil a Singapore Pavilion for the first time. (read more)
Join our mailing list
Share your thoughts