Louisa Daley , deputy editor , Conference News , chats to Rick Stainton , founder , The Power of Events , about its Industry Insight App and Cross Four Nations Roadshow

he Power of Events has come a long way since its launch in 2020 . Originally created to bring the industry together during the pandemic , it has now set its sights on a bigger picture .

This year , the organisation has launched a dedicated website , an Industry Insight App and a promotional roadshow across key universities in the UK and Ireland , all in the hopes of showcasing and defining the events industry .

To find out more , I sat down with the organisations founder , Rick Stainton , during his visit to the University of Westminster .

Back to basics “ The Power of Events platform is essentially a map which showcases what ’ s going on in the industry . You can visit it to learn about the seven sectors , key industry players , news from across the sectors , a calendar of all industry events , the 150 core organisations supporting the industry , as well as listen to expert podcasts – for the first time , all in one place .

“ Our Event Industry Insight App is an extension of this . If you trust The Power of Events ’ brand and its values , the app will be a more

engaging and trusted way of delivering our mission to create better understanding , value and respect for the UK events industry ,” Stainton explains .

According to Stainton , the Event Industry Insight App is a tool for anyone who wants to complete industry research . The app is spearheaded by its Research Action Group , which combines association heads with university partners and faculty leaders . “ This is because they have often been the drivers of data , insight reports and trend analysis for the events industry ,” he adds .

But what ’ s so important about industry research ?, I ask Stainton . “ The events industry has told us it needs more credible , authentic and cross sector data . They ’ ve asked us

Rick Stainton

“ The events industry has told us it needs more credible , authentic and cross sector data .”

to support them reporting at a national level and a governmental level , about the size , impact and breadth of the UK events industry – alongside the economic value it brings .

“ There ’ s great stuff going on in individual sectors , but the insight could be evolved to become more collaborative for all to deploy the bigger numbers all for their own remits . The more people contribute to better data insights across the seven sectors , the better .

“ In the two weeks since its launch , 500 organisations / event professionals have downloaded the app , which is a promising start . As we ramp up the engagement through media coverage and the university tour , we are targeting for this to be in the 1,000s by the end of 2023 ,” says Stainton .

The app , Stainton adds , will be vital to the industry and allow them to share their pain points and common challenges . “ You might get a notification asking how the tube strike has affected your business , for example , and the results will be shared live in the app ,” he explains .

“ The events industry can expect the first pipeline of research projects by the end of the year . We ’ ve already got about four to five potential projects that people have proposed to us even before we launched , which is really exciting . Covering analysis across areas like the freelancer community , unrepresented backgrounds and employment resilience ,” Stainton tells me .