Expectations
To understand more about expectations , respondents were asked to rate various elements in terms of importance to them as a buyer . One of the biggest percentages was that 84.2 % of respondents noted that it was ‘ essential ’ for a production company to consult with a client to determine needs and objectives . The same percentage noted that implementation management was equally as essential .
Conceptualisation was more divided , with 58 % noting it as ‘ essential ’ while 31.6 % said was ‘ useful ’. Curiously , 10 % said it was ‘ not important ’.
Equally as interesting was the concept of roadmapping to plan tasks and objectives , of which only 37 % noted was ‘ essential ’ with 58 % saying it was ‘ useful ’. Perhaps most interestingly of all , was the measurement of key performance indicators in terms of satisfaction and performance . Approximately 52 % of the respondents noted was ‘ essential ’ while 36.8 % said was ‘ useful ’ and 10 % saying it was ‘ not important ’.
It demonstrates that organisers generally know what they want before they set off . Indeed , when asked , 66 % of respondents said they knew exactly what they wanted , while only 16.7 % said they expected it to be guided by a production agency .
Live and virtual
In terms of buying habits , respondents were asked which of the following statements best described the type of companies they procure for when running events . The first question read “ As a buyer I prefer to hire one company for an entire event ”, for which 66.7 % of respondents noted they did this for in-person events versus 26.7 % for hybrid , and 60 % for virtual .
The next question stated : “ As a buyer I prefer to hire multiple
50 %
of respondents said when it comes to production company they are led by quality
companies for the entire event such as technical production printing exhibition ”, for which 66.7 % agreed that they all did this for in-person events , 58.3 % said they did it for hybrid events , but only 8.3 % said they did it for virtual events .
To add context , most respondents attributed a full package of services as being the main reason why they would choose to use just one production company . Yet , interestingly , when asked why some people prefer to hire multiple companies for an entire event , there was no one single option , but rather several similar reasons including budget , specific expertise , and special offers being deciding factors .
Budgets
As we know , in the wake of the pandemic and with the rising cost of living affecting all aspects of our lives , budget is one of the industry ’ s key talking points . Respondents were asked for their rough budgets for various types of events . For live conferences for up to 300 delegates , the largest percentile of 85.7 % said they had budgets in excess of £ 35,000 . This was followed by the next
70.8 %
of respondents said that value for money was ‘ very important ’
popular budget range of between £ 5,000 and £ 9,999 .
Approximately 71 % of respondents also revealed that their budgets for hybrid events is at least £ 35,000 , although this was far more evenly spread with 40 % of respondents saying that their budget was between £ 1,000 and £ 4,999 .
Virtual events clearly are viewed as a slightly more economical form of event , with some organisers unaware of what their budget is . The most popular response was 60 % of respondents saying that their budget was between £ 1,000 and £ 4,999 .
It should therefore not be a surprise that , when asked what and organisers ’ main consideration is when procuring a new event supplier , pricing was by far and away the most popular element .
If one thing is clear , it ’ s that a production agency should not be brought in as just another cog in the event machine .
Organisers want to bring them into the process as early as possible , but it ’ s vital that these production agencies are transparent with budget and understand the needs of the delegates . CN www . conference-news . co . uk