Theodore G. Bradpiece
Vice President
Two Bears Travel
Los Angeles
Do you find that your booking window is increasing or shrinking recently? Are you finding it harder to book rooms/meeting space in a short timeframe at hotels and other meeting facilities?
I am finding that the booking window is increasing slightly as my clients are more aware of possible discounts for early-booking, they want to take advantage of them. I am also finding that the booking window is increasing as some of my clients have preferred venues for the events and they want to ensure that the space is available to them.
Is the duration of your meetings either shrinking or expanding?
The duration of the meetings I am planning are remaining the same due to the requirements of the various entities that I work with. There is a certain amount of work that needs to be done and a certain amount of required information that needs to be disseminated, so the event lengths are not changing.
Is the attendance at your meetings shrinking or expanding?
The attendance at some of the events is decreasing due to reduced budgets and goals not being met in order to allow participation. For other events I am seeing that attendance is increasing as the entities that I work with have increased the number of people that are required to attend.
Did you have a smaller or larger budget to work with last year? If so, how much do you estimate it was decreased or increased?
In most cases I have a smaller budget then last year. I would say the average budget has decreased by about 5% to 10%.
Do you expect your budget to increase or decrease in 2012?
Depending on the Industry I expect a further 5% decrease in budgets for 2012
Do you expect your attendance to increase or decrease in 2012?
I would expect attendance for sales incentive programs to decrease, but other programs, such as compliance and regulatory programs, to stay the same.
Are perception problems (meeting at luxurious properties, resort destinations, etc.) a great concern for your organization? Have they become less of a concern than they were in 2010, and do you expect them to present any perception problems in 2012?
Perception problems are indeed a concern of my clients. They sometimes get quite a bit of flack for booking a particular resort or venue as it is perceived to be “too grand” considering the current economic environment. I do not really expect any change in perception from 2011 into 2012. There has been a slight reduction in perception problems from 2010 to 2011, but nothing that would make me think that these perception issues are going to disappear
Are there any destinations or facility types that are considered “off-limits” due to perception problems or the current economic climate?
My clients want to hear about all of the offerings available to them. As long as the value idea can be fully explored, there is nothing that is currently off-limits.
Have you planned, or do you expect to plan, virtual/videoconference meetings? Do you expect to see more virtual meetings in the future?
I do not plan these types of meetings nor do I expect to plan them in the future.
Are you exploring the possibility, or have you already held, a “hybrid” meeting (meetings that combine live events with an Internet/digital component? If so, what are your observations?
I have not explored nor planned these types of meetings.
Are you finding that you are scheduling more meeting sessions per day, and if so, is it at the expense of entertainment or events that are more social in nature?
I am finding that there is a slight increase in the number of sessions per day that are being planned and I find that it is coming at the cost of some social events. The bulk of these changes though are to get the required information out to the participants.
Are you incorporating more, or less, activities into your agenda? If so, what types of activities are being added or cut?
I am incorporating the same number of activities into the agenda but they are not being offered for the same duration as they were in the past.
Have you offered, or do you think you will offer, a CSR (corporate social responsibility) component to your meetings?
Depending on the client, CSR is a regular part of the meetings planned.
Are sustainable (green) meetings something your organization has moved toward? If not, do you expect to implement more-sustainable meetings in the future?
At this point sustainable meetings are something we are looking at moving forward but are not heavily implementing at this time. I do foresee increased sustainable meetings in the future.
Are you finding that attrition clauses are being enforced more, or less, strictly recently?
I am finding that attrition clauses are being enforced more strictly of late. I think that with the weakening economy, and the loss of meeting revenue, venues are turning to attrition clauses to help offset some of the loss.
Do you feel the pendulum is swinging back to being a seller’s market?
I do not feel that the pendulum is quite swinging back to a seller’s market but I am seeing signs that it is trying to move that way. We are noticing that the venues we work with are trying harder and harder to not discount the rates as much as they have in the past but I am not seeing much success in that policy holding firm.
Do you find that you had much more leverage on room rates during the last year?
I feel that I am seeing less leverage on room rates right now. There are occasions when I feel that I am able to obtain an additional discount, but it my clients do not meet the F&B minimums I am finding that room rates are not being discounted to the extent that they were in the past.
Are you using social networking websites for business purposes? If so, which ones and why?
That is a decision that each of our clients makes on their own, we do not suggest one way or the other.
Have you planned more meetings closer to your organization’s headquarters (“drive-to” meetings) recently?
We have planned more “drive-to” meetings then we have in the past due to the increase in airfare and the issues relating to flight delays and canellations.
Are you more optimistic, or less, about the meetings industry and the economy than a year ago?
I remain neutral, not optimistic nor pessimistic. However, if the job market does not improve shortly I am afraid that more meetings will be cancelled and even more incentive programs will be cancelled.
How do you think 2012 will shape up for the meetings industry? Where do you see costs (hotel, restaurant, venue prices, etc.) going? Do you think your budget and/or attendance will increase or decrease?
I think that prices will increase in 2012 but I think the budgets might remain where they are. Depending on the industry, attendance might decrease or remain flat. I think that the general trend in commodity pricing is going to cause the increase in pricing, but I think companies are going to look very hard at the line items.
