If 2022 was the year of mass vaccination and when the reduced incidence of coronavirus returned us to normality in many respects, then 2023 promises to be an encouraging year in the MICE sector.
The period of adjustment that the business tourism industry had to go through in recent years has been left behind and 2023 appears far less volatile in a qualitative sense. A certain naturalness has been regained, with a return to the path of natural development in the sector beyond reinventions (we will see that some have come to stay).
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), business tourism will grow at an average annual rate of 5,5% until 2032, and only in 2022 growth of 4,1% was estimated. These figures show how professional tourism is recovering the normality it has lost in recent years, and that essentially involves a return to some traditional practices, combined with new trends in corporate events for 2023.
There are however, certain aspects which must be taken into account and which will influence in one form or another, the way in which we perceive and experience the activities of professional tourism. There is no doubt that with rising inflation worldwide, and a geopolitical context marked by the conflict in Ukraine, certain patterns will be modified which we will now see. Let us take a look at the principle trends in event organisation and MICE tourism in 2023.
Foto de Alexandre Pellaes en Unsplash
New trends in events
Will we see great changes in the trends for event organisation in 2022 in relation to 2023? Digitalization, a la carte consumption or the sustainable economy are societal behaviours which look sure to make a mark on the next decade and consequently will be repeated this year in the trends for corporate events.
Digital events
One of the lessons learned by many brands during the hardest part of the pandemic is the effectiveness of digital events. In fact, nowadays there are still many brands who continue to hold their big annual events in an online context. They have also found a way to open up to another type of consumer and in some cases, reduce costs.
More events …and á la carte
Digitalization has democratised the celebration of corporate events. With a much lower cost, small companies have decided to cross over to these types of events where they can gather together their clients and followers on the net.
The consequence of this is the large number of this type of events to which the user has access, opening up an immense range of possibilities, discovering niche content and selecting more carefully what the user is attracted by.
The result is a more experienced client, one who is more demanding and seeks much more specific content
Additional content on demand for attendees
The possibilities of the different digital platforms also allow additional content on request for the user. In an increasingly enriched information environment, the user is the one who decides when and where to consume the content which is on offer.
As a result, brands make it possible for their attendees to expand the experience of the event with additional information which can be consumed and consulted at any time using any of their devices. The outcome is a more complete experience, one which lasts longer and which requires a lesser sacrifice for users with regard to their time management.
Adapting to social media and the participation of influencers
Influencers are becoming increasingly more powerful as opinion leaders among many groups of the population. To get an idea of the prestige of these individuals, let’s remember that, in 2020, Finland used well-known influencers to raise the public’s awareness of the safety measures that they had to take to protect themselves against coronavirus. Having these public figures at events will be an incentive for the organisers.
Hybrid events
We have already talked at great length on the Grand Luxor Business & Events blog about hybrid events. Currently it is one of the biggest trends concerning corporate events.
Hybrid events allow a combination of the strengths of digital events whilst conserving the face to face element for those users who prefer direct contact. This facilitates a situation where not only do all client profiles feel comfortable in their relation with the brand, but also across the board content can be generated which reaches very different types of client.
The importance of technical resources in celebrations
If everything related with digital events is a trending topic then this must also be the case for the importance of having at your disposal the necessary technical resources to make the event into an effortless and comfortable experience for the user
As the celebration of the event itself has been democratised and any brand large or small can livestream, it is in the technical area where the difference can be appreciated. The sound, image quality and the technical result of the product is now a differential value.
Sustainable events
Ecology, the circular economy and an awareness of sustainability and the struggle against climate change never seen before is present in the new trends of event organization.
Let us not expand too much on this as we have already covered sustainable events in a previous article. Awareness of the abuse of electricity consumption and above all, of the use of plastic utensils and packaging is forefront in the mind of today´s consumer.
Outdoor celebrations
Linked to sustainable events we have outdoor celebrations. Taking advantage of daylight secures a substantial saving of energy. For this purpose, the celebration of events in places where a good climate is present all year is particularly relevant.
This is one of the great opportunities offered by event spaces on the Mediterranean coast, as is the case of Grand Luxor Hotel Business & Events. Grand Luxor is located in a privileged space on the Costa Blanca with more than 300 days of sunshine per year and with an average of more than 8 hours light per day, reaching in the spring and summer months up to 14 hours. You can request more information on our contact page.
Roadshows: itinerant events
With the price of fuel and transport still high, brands continue to explore ways of reaching their clients instead of making them travel to an event venue.
This is the case of roadshows, itinerant events which transport all their equipment to different geographical locations either simultaneously or at different times, repeating the same experience in different places to reach a greater number of participants.
This also allows brands to stimulate the local commerce of the area, focusing the spend in the different areas where the event takes place, contributing in addition to the sustainable economy by reducing the use of fuel used by people attending the event.
Events in exotic or unusual destinations
At the opposite extreme of the previous point, propositions for exclusive events in exotic or unusual places can be detected. Firstly, this type of intiative can seek a counterpoint to previous years when restrictions constrained the wish of the consumer or clients to expand beyond the frontiers of their countries.
On the other hand, a geographically distant face to face event will be a way to create a differentiated point, a purple cow in the face of a marked trend towards the digital world.
Interaction and gamification at events
The user profile changes with the times. Currently, a big proportion of clients have grown up in an environment where videogames and interactive elements have formed part of their lives and learning experiences. This involves a demand for content based on interaction where gamification plays an important role.
Gamification is a learning model which uses the classic mechanism of games and videogames in the educational process and in the internalisation of new concepts. We could speak at length about about this and in fact we do in this post on gamification in events.
Group experiences for work groups
We constantly receive messages about a society which is ever more connected remotely and yet less connected face to face. Consequently, many companies demand experiences which require the participants to interact , connect with each other and learn to work and solve problems as a group.
In this environment where digital contact is prioritised and now that health restrictions have eased up, generating direct contact experiences can become truly disruptive. We also deal with this in another article on Team building activities.
Safety and hygiene at events
Safety in the context of hygiene has become more important after the pandemic. Even with the great sanitary crisis overcome, the user still retains a high level of awareness of safety and hygiene, and this has been transferred to the variables which an event manager must manage from now on.
Health and Safety at events
Safety in the context of large public gatherings has become one of the principal variables to be considered when organising an event. In the aftermath of the world health crisis, the user is more conscious of health and safety and this has been reflected in the variables which an event manager must manage from now on.
Wellness and health
Nowadays, well-being and leading a healthy life are aspects which have ever greater value. As a result, the inclusion of Wellness in the celebration of corporate events is becoming increasingly normalised. A Slow style incentive trip or a few days spent in a hotel or other setting which has Wellness facilities will be seen as an impetus for the participants who are more and more active in practices such as Yoga, Pilates or even extreme activities like Crossfit.
Events where alcohol is not consumed or very little of it, are catching on as well. This saves the organisers money and it also ensures that an excess of alcohol does not impair the participants.
Small meetings
We have already spoken about the concept of small seeting as a trend in 2022. At that time we were talking about professionals who did not feel prepared for large events and who however, missed the capacity to generate face to face contacts. Well, these types of small meeting events continue to be trending but this time for different reasons.
In a society which is ever more fragmented, where cultural and identity options are infinitely greater, communication has become a question of more specific ranges of audience (Buyer persona), very particular, reduced and almost tribal niche markets which require the specific attention of the brands. The attendees of corporate events expect a unique and personalised experience adapted to their needs and preferences. Therefore, it is likely that we will see an increase in the personalisation of events in the future.
Celebrations in the Metaverse
Together with artificial intelligence, the Metaverse was last year´s great protagonist in many sectors. Even though it is still a trend, the transition towards this new way of understanding events and social relations will progress more slowly than expected. It will remain for “early adopter“ brands with a patently experimental view, who will offer brief contacts with this way to understand the digital world.
These virtual reality events can be very beneficial and useful in particular sectors although they are still in an early stage. You can find out more in this article where we speak about how the metaverse will change the way to understand corporate events.
Trends in events for 2023
In a world of constant change, we must look out for the new trends which will appear in the next few months and will change the way to understand personal and working relations in a corporate context.
Can we foresee the next step towards the digital world? Will human contact confronting the dehumanisation of remote working become a trend? Will large scale celebrations return?
It will certainly be exciting to find out.