AUSTIN, Texas—Cendyn and ConferenceDirect introduced the outcomes of their annual report, 2025 State of the Conferences Trade. The collaboration, paired with Knowland by Cendyn knowledge, offered insights to assist business professionals perceive what assembly planners and occasion managers count on and can prioritize in 2025. The collaboration helps business professionals perceive what assembly planners and occasion managers count on and can prioritize in 2025.
Previously 12 months, the panorama of conferences has been evolving in surprising methods. Smaller conferences dominated in 2024, however 2025 is ushering in a resurgence of medium and bigger gatherings, signaling a comeback for bigger occasions. On the similar time, planners have needed to adapt shortly, with virtually half of bookings made for occasions taking place inside the similar 12 months. However a shift is underway—extra organizations are wanting forward, with a rising variety of conferences being scheduled three to 5 years upfront. Different highlights embody:
- Medium and large-sized conferences strike a steadiness: Conferences with 100 to 250 attendees represented 35.8 p.c of all bookings in america, whereas occasions with over 500 attendees accounted for 32.4 p.c. Throughout the 12 months, 49.4 p.c of bookings have been made within the 12 months for the 12 months. Nevertheless, reserving home windows are lengthening as 9.5 p.c of conferences booked have been three to 5 years upfront. This development exhibits an equalizing shift between smaller and bigger occasions, emphasizing the necessity for hoteliers to enhance providers and facilities tailor-made to numerous group sizes. By specializing in each medium-sized conferences (100 to 250 attendees) and bigger ones (over 500 attendees), hoteliers can make the most of this balanced market.
- Rising prices proceed to be a prime space of dissatisfaction: Planners are dissatisfied with rising prices, which has strained budgets and affected the standard of occasions. Value-cutting measures, corresponding to shorter conferences, different locations, and diminished actions or meals and beverage choices, should be managed successfully to keep away from compromising the attendee expertise.
- Secondary markets have gotten extra favorable: Corporations could contemplate altering locations and venues to handle assembly prices. Teams usually tend to relocate occasions to secondary markets to take care of occasion high quality and/or standing and keep away from shifting down in chain scale. This shift presents alternatives for secondary and tertiary markets to draw new enterprise by providing high quality merchandise, providers, and enticing pricing options in contrast with the highest 25 market locations.
- Audio-visual assist and F&B are most popular RFP add-ons: Planners search proposals that clearly outline technological capabilities and catering choices regardless of costs trending upward. Sixty p.c of planners report superior AV assist as a prime precedence with 33 p.c indicating that technology-enabled occasions are prime of thoughts. Greater than 53 p.c of respondents desire that catering in RFP responses emphasize performance and hospitality.
“It’s an thrilling time to be part of the conferences and occasion business. The outlook for 2025 is optimistic, with greater than 40 p.c of assembly planners anticipating bookings to extend and 65 p.c anticipating greater attendance whilst rising prices stay a big problem for planners,” stated Michael Bennet, president, Cendyn. “Discovering a steadiness between excessive prices and delivering an incredible buyer expertise will outline successful venues in 2025. We sit up for enabling our clients to make each visitor interplay a chance to nurture relationships and maximize profitability.”
“We’ve got seen an increase in secondary markets as fashionable locations, with 90 p.c of planners contemplating them a cost-saving different,” stated Larry Hanson, CMO, ConferenceDirect. “That being stated, planners will prioritize venues able to making an enduring impression. Respondents emphasised that there’s little room for compromise relating to occasion high quality and the strain is on to ship distinctive attendee experiences.”
