1. What’s happening in the
Meetings Industry and Why
buyers choose destinations
Paul Kennedy MBE
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

2. Structure
1. Macro Industry trends
2. Current and emerging trends
3. Destinations and their supply chains
4. Buyer selection criteria
5. Current buyer focus
6. The challenge for Lithuania and the region
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

3. Macro Industry Trends
• Ever increasing competition on the demand side
• Emergence of second and third tier destinations
• The evolution of cities not countries as the economic drivers
• Underlying growth in demand for meetings increasing
• Content beginning to drive rationale for association meetings
• ROI/ROO of meetings
• Increasing political awareness of the economic importance of the
industry
• Cuts in government spending in Western Europe
• Reduced EU budget going forward
• Airlines beginning to wake up to the business
• Emergence of smaller regional trade shows
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

4. Destinations and their supply chains
• Must act as one
• The existence of the CVB increasingly
importance at city, regional and national level
• Must get face to face with the buyers
• Adopt long term business strategies
• Must have ambassador schemes
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

5. Buyer Selection criteria
• Accessibility of the destination and venues
• Price and price flexibility
• Quality of facilities-you must have them as well
• Quality of service
• Safety
• Newness and novelty
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

6. Current Buyer Focus
• Flexibility
• Compactness of destinations-n.b. for associations
• Added Value
• Supply Chain as one
• Sustainability
• Creativity
• Difference
• Quickness
• Transparency
• Subvention for association meetings
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

7. The challenge for Lithuania and the
region
• A world class convention venue
• Air lift
• Consistent, well resourced and long term marketing
and business development strategy
Kennedy Integrated Solutions

8. Q&A
Kennedy Integrated Solutions