Tourism Winnipeg

Economic Development Winnipeg | Tourism Winnipeg 11 Meeting and convention trends Eventbrite believes meetings and conventions will become more focused on well-being, on creating emotions and memories and bringing people together for a purpose. They also foresee events becoming more sustainable while technology will make planners more effective than ever. Benchmark Hospitality International indicates the following trends are rising in prominence and popularity for 2019: › Privacy and security – reliable and secure Wi-Fi is of paramount interest as not only meeting content, but delegates' personal communications are a concern. › Fresh food, served family style – food brings people together. Planners are seeking fresh, healthy, and shareable dishes. › Emails reign supreme – email will remain the medium of choice for planners for business, however, a simple handwritten note will go a long way. › Independent hotels become appealing – as more meetings involve third-party meeting planners, independent hotels, paying a higher commission, are growing in interest. › State-of-the-art venues wins out – delegates are seeking multiple plug-ins and USB ports for their myriad of devices in meeting rooms and public spaces, as well as non-traditional seating and meeting arrangements. › Experiences attract – after a day of meetings, planners are seeking experiential activities showcasing a destination as options for evening programs. › Trendy team building – team building continues to grow in popularity, whether it's a culinary event, hiking excursion, games or learning new life skills. › Outdoor escapes embraced – after a day of meetings, groups are also looking to relax together around a fire pit, along a river, or in a park. › Speed breeds success – lightning-fast responses to a RFP are essential to winning business with planners today. › Balance is better – work-life balance is important. Healthy food choices, as well as yoga, meditation, and breathing classes for meeting breaks are growing in demand. Bring It Home Program (BIH) Community leaders, especially those who sit on a board or committee, are well positioned to use their influence to attract their meeting or convention to Winnipeg. The BIH program, a targeted initiative within EDW and in partnership with Travel Manitoba, is designed to work with local experts and leaders to advocate for Winnipeg as their next meeting or convention destination. The BIH program recognizes and leverages meetings and conventions as economic drivers for both tourism and investment attraction. In addition to increasing visitation to Winnipeg, the program also works to attract business events that align with Winnipeg's economic sectors. This allows meetings and conventions to showcase the expertise of locals as a value proposition as to why meet in Winnipeg. Since the program's inception in 2012 to December 31, 2018, BIH influencers have helped bring 93 business events to Winnipeg, which resulted in an estimated direct spend of $47 million representing 45,000 delegates and 74,000 room nights. Business Events Canada (BEC) Business Events Canada, the meetings and conventions arm of Destination Canada, has aligned its sales and marketing strategy with Canada's global trade priorities, focusing on the key economic sectors in which Canada holds an international competitive advantage. Tourism Winnipeg, through a Travel Manitoba partnership, will continue to leverage these opportunities, as well as target BEC's geographic markets of Chicago and Washington, D.C. as the majority of associations are headquartered here. RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg Tourism Winnipeg and the RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg continue to align their sales activities to capitalize on the centre's expansion and to increase effectiveness in attracting citywide conferences. Tourism Winnipeg and the RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg will continue to meet regularly to formulate sales strategies, cross-reference leads, enhance the request for proposal (RFP) process and host clients. Economic sectors Tourism Winnipeg has re-aligned its target markets to focus on Winnipeg's economic strengths that can be leveraged as unique selling propositions to attract meetings and conventions. Advanced manufacturing, aerospace, agri-business and information and communication technologies (ICT) have been identified as the city's top industries that can enhance convention programs through local expertise and services. Third-party meeting planners Tourism Winnipeg will increase its sales activities with third-party meeting planners as more and more associations are engaging these companies to assist in the delivery of their annual meetings and conventions. This sector is growing as third parties receive commissions from the tourism supplier so that they can provide their services to the associations free of charge. Third parties have also formed strategic alliances with tourism suppliers, giving them tremendous negotiating powers that are passed along to associations. Manuel Sousa

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