According to Global DMC Partners' Q2 Meetings & Events Pulse Survey, 60% of international respondents reported that sustainability goals are a driving factor in choosing a destination for programmes versus 25% of US/Canadian respondents.
Global DMC Partners (GDP), a network of independently owned destination
management companies and creative event experts, recently shared the
results of its Q2 Meetings & Events Pulse Survey, with more work in
sustainability now a strong focus.
The
survey polled 237 meeting and event professionals, the majority of
which were US based, with results collected between 31 May and 30 June
2022.
Participants were primarily full-time employees (85%), with 97%
holding a mid-level role or higher working as either third-party
independent planners, corporate event planners, or association
executives.
A key insight was on sustainability, with the international response
to incorporating sustainability into events higher than that in the US.
Some 45% of international respondents reported that their clients or
companies have sustainability goals in place for travel, meetings,
events or incentives as compared to only 31% of US/Canadian respondents.
Some 60% of international respondents reported that sustainability
goals are a driving factor in choosing a destination for programmes
versus 25% of US/Canadian respondents.
The study also found that meeting and incentive budgets are not
likely to decrease for the vast majority of organisations and their
clients, with most respondents saying that meeting budgets had risen in
2022 in comparison to 2021 (52%) and will be increasing in 2023 (41%).
Incentive budgets were also anticipated to increase but less so than
for meetings. Some 86% of survey respondents said incentive budgets
would either stay the same or increase from 2021 to 2022 and 59%
reported it would be the same from 2022 to 2023. Almost 70% of survey
respondents said inflation was the main cause of budget increases.
The study also found that rising airfare costs are affecting
destination choice for the majority of planners (60%), with some noting
that their organisations or clients were choosing locations based on
where the majority of their attendees were located or within a short
proximity of the host destination.
To offset rising costs 47% of survey respondents said that their
organisations are increasing their pricing for services and or events,
particularly those based in North America.