Corporate Event Management
Special events are the perfect answer to the question: How do I get my customers and prospects all to myself? Special events provide the best way to connect with customers, prospects, colleagues and even your own employees and partners. At Idea International, our goal is to make your event memorable and provide the environment that will help all attendees focus on your company and your goals—all in an unforgettable situation. We stand apart from other corporate event management companies.
The term “event” covers a broad spectrum of meanings. For some people, an event may be an adjunct to a trade show. For others, an event can be a stand-alone entity. For example, when the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania did a world tour to connect with alumni, Idea International managed the event in the APAC region. Still others might put educational sessions—seminars, speaker series, or key opinion leader dinners—in the event category.
Business Events on a Global Basis (See below for consumer brand activations)
UFI estimates that the event industry is responsible for approximately 31,000 events around the world annually, an average of about 85 events every day of the year—equating to approximately:
- 124 million sqm of total net exhibition space rented
- 4 million exhibiting companies and approximately 260 million visitors
- USD55 billion in total value
- 680,000 full-time equivalent jobs
At the same time, there is increasing awareness of the competition for booking the entire range of business events to new venues across the globe, events which include:
- Association meetings (often include exhibit halls)
- Exhibitions
- Corporate meetings
- Corporate incentive travel
Association-hosted events are a vital component of the BE sector globally and have experienced healthy growth over the past decade. They provide the largest share of business for some entities such as convention centers. The relative stability and predictable schedules of the association sector compared with corporate meetings makes it particularly attractive. The market is less susceptible to short-term changes in economic conditions because of the long-term nature of the business and the need to maintain meetings as a revenue generating form of member communication. Often larger association meetings feature an exhibition or expo.
Exhibitions cover both trade and public events. Standalone exhibitions are often developed and owned by entrepreneurial exhibition organizers, many of which are global companies that determine the feasibility of staging shows in certain countries and regions. Exhibitions also form an important component of many association conferences (as above), providing a valuable revenue source and a commercial boost to the event. Exhibitions are increasingly held alongside conferences and seminars, and vice versa.
Corporate meetings tend to be smaller in size than association conferences, but overall represent a larger share of the total BE market, regarding number and frequency. These meetings can take many forms: from annual corporate conferences to retreats, training seminars, and product launches. The strength of this sector tends to reflect the strength of the economy and, as such, there are concerns that state of the global economy could depress the corporate meetings sector in the foreseeable future.
Corporate incentive travel, used to reward top clients, distributors and/or staff, can range from very small groups or couples to large groups of many thousands at one time. Promoted widely by destination management companies and special event planners, this segment represents the newest offering for employee events and company innovations. Corporate incentive travel has grown rapidly over the past two decades. Traditional markets in North America and Europe are facing strong competition from grand openings of venues and the allure of the APAC region.
“Convention” is a term that’s generally reserved for very large gatherings and often include a trade show—or exhibition or expo. That being said, most annual meetings and conferences also include a trade show portion of the show.
A word about definitions: although the Event Industry Council’s Apex Glossary is the best source for exact definitions, in ordinary parlance, the terms ”meeting,” “conference,” “convention,” and “congress” are very similar and don’t give much context other than a gathering of individuals who are interested in discussing and learning about a particular subject — usually a subject the individuals have a career interest in or an expertise. Companies such as Idea International facilitating these meetings are prepared to orchestrate logistics for events from seminars to gala fundraisers and grand openings, developing conference themes that are in sync with both the audience and the host. Idea International manages relationships, registers guests, tracks speakers, and helps develop budgets for the best return on event investments.
Activations: there is a whole world of consumer events, and this segment of the event industry is growing with astonishing velocity. Brand activations are drive consumer action through brand interaction and experiences. In simple terms, the goal of these campaigns is to get consumers to act. Activations bring brands to life via experiences and forming long-term emotional connections.
Brand activations take many forms and may involve some, or all of the following:
- Consumer promotions
- Experiential Marketing
- Digital campaigns
- Shopper Marketing
- Sampling campaigns
Brand activations are designed to deliver measurable results, with a focus on ROI.
Planning an event in the APAC region takes a significant knowledge of cultural sensitives. What works in one country may be offensive in another. Food and beverage choices are dictated by culture; many countries in the APAC region frown on alcohol consumption. Everything from cutlery to preferential seating needs to be filtered through the keen eyes of event managers who know the specific country or region (as is the case in China). Event managers like those you will find at Idea International. Because we are based in the APAC region we must be absolutely aware of cultural, religious, and political issues that influence the success of events.
Idea International is also skilled in facilitating business meetings. If you plan to have a meeting in an APAC country, you want to make sure that you are not only getting the best facilities and arrangements possible—you also want to make sure that pricing is transparent and that your meeting managers know how to negotiate effectively. Quoting for meeting services in the APAC region is not always as line-item driven as it is, say, in the U.S. Having an event manager that knows the nuances of the negotiation process is critical.
Each event that we plan is unique, and no event is too big or too small. Events, particularly in the APAC region including countries such as Japan, Korea, China, Malaysia, Thailand, are significant occasions, an opportunity for guests to network, to deepen personal bonds, to recognize achievements, to celebrate milestones and to create lasting impressions. Idea International designs and orchestrates your events from start to finish, leaving your guests with a one of a kind experience. Idea International’s event management and meeting planning will bring your vision to life with style and class, no matter where you hold it, no matter who your guests are.
“Dear team, as we put our heads to pillow after a long and productive day at Gastech Japan 2017, I would like to tell you how proud I am of each and every one of you who gave 110% and what an honor it is to work beside the best of the best!”
