A poll of a mixed group of buyers and suppliers of solutions and services for business Meetings, Incentives, Conference and Events, has indicated an expectation of digital disruption in the industry.
The event – the sixth hosted in 2 years by M.I.C.E.-in-the-bag – was held in London at The Marriott, Regent’s Park, The Hilton Paddington and Millenium Gloucester hotels. It included businesses from a broad range of European countries including Greece, Malta, Slovenia, UK, Germany, Spain and Holland. The events are invitation-only gatherings between MICE suppliers and budget-approved buyers.
In a discussion between representatives of the whole supply chain hosted by Shift Actions’ Justin Roux, 60% of the audience believed that a significant digital disruption could be expected inside the next 5 years.
This followed a unanimous show of no hands when asked if there was sufficient clarity of needs and mutual understanding up and down the supply chain. Only 2% of the audience felt there was too much complexity in the industry and none felt that a MICE-specific digital solution currently existed.
Other concerns included the effects of Brexit, emerging destinations and a need for qualified B2B meetings of the MICE-in-the-bag format.
Commenting on the results, Justin Roux of Shift Actions consultancy said: “There is clearly tension in the supply chain that MICE-in-the-bag aims to ease with its clever event formula. But, on a global scale, existing market-place platforms such as Expedia are simply not suitable for business-scale events because the risk and funding models are totally different to leisure travel. There are doubts as to whether a market-place solution is a workable solution but the attendees have certainly voiced a need for change.”
