LEADERSHIP
Last month , one of the largest privately owned businesses on the planet , Mars , announced it was planning to cut corporate travel by 50 %, booking 145,000 fewer flights each year . Marking one of the biggest moves yet by a corporation to shift its post-pandemic approach to business trips , the confectionery giant told its staff ‘ fly for purpose , not presence ’.
For a multinational like Mars , whose business travel costs were huge and whose green goals include committing US $ 1bn to becoming ‘ Sustainable in a Generation ’, the pandemic has proven that business on a global scale can still be done without splashing the cash or poisoning the planet ( thanks Zoom ). And that when travel restrictions are eventually eased , and physical global events return , businesses may be more selective about the type of travel they sign off , in a bid to cut costs and boost sustainability efforts .
The truth is , the last 18 months has revealed the business value of virtual eventing with video conferencing platforms like Zoom being leveraged throughout the pandemic
“ There is a stronger appetite for digital or hybrid events in Asia , with respondents more than twice as likely to have participated in such events than those from other regions ”
KAI HATTENDORF CEO , UFI ( THE GLOBAL ASSOCIATION OF THE EXHIBITION INDUSTRY ) to stage millions of meetings and events , many of which have gone off without either a hitch ( or carbon footprint ) saving execs money , time and even the planet .
So , what does that mean for the future of physical events ? Has the pandemic ’ s digital transformation leap put a nail in the physical conference coffin ?
Not according to various recent studies which have confirmed that Zoom fatigue really is a thing and that people are yearning for a return to in-person events .
In fact , if anything , the all-consuming use of digital technologies during the pandemic for meetings and conferences “ has proven and reiterated the value of meeting face to face ”, Kai Hattendorf , CEO of UFI , The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry , tells Business Chief . “ Just as there was a big rush to digital-only in 2020 , there is now a big rush to physical-only – and we are seeing this in Europe , the US and China .”
And recent data from UFI , Explori and SISO ’ s Global Recovery Insights research backs this up with 86 % of both visitors and exhibitors at digital trade shows declaring the face-to-face format superior to digitalonly events .
Strong appetite for physical events And the appetite for a return to physical events is stronger in APAC . According to UFI data , “ exhibitions in Asia-Pacific are likely to see stronger growth in participation from both visitors and exhibitors , compared to the rest of the world ”, says Hattendorf .
Australia is certainly looking promising with Tourism Australia global research revealing a “ real appetite for the resumption of business events ”, Robin Mack , Tourism Australia ’ s Executive GM Commercial & Business Events , tells Business Chief . Some 79 % of association decision-makers and 69 %
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