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INTERNATIONAL ATENDANCE

INCREASE. INTERNATIONAL ATENDANCE. Angel Napolitano Executive Vice President Client Operations. General decrease of internationals. International attendees at respondents’ conferences, not exclusive to medical meetings:

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INTERNATIONAL ATENDANCE

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  1. INCREASE INTERNATIONAL ATENDANCE Angel Napolitano Executive Vice President Client Operations

  2. General decrease of internationals International attendees at respondents’ conferences, not exclusive to medical meetings: “The U.S. continued to lose market share last year as international travel expanded 6 percent globally across all world regions.” -Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics 8 % 2018 6 % *Convene Magazine’s Meetings Market Survey

  3. Participation Trend: North America vs. Europe Sample size is ten citywide medical conferences with proprietary data collected between 2015 and 2018. Numbers include rooms sourced both through official housing and around the block. Only non-US guests have been counted. * Since 2015, international attendance has declined 15%. Sample size is thirteen citywide medical conferences with publicly posted data collected between 2015 and 2018. Numbers include total participants as reported by the association. Overall attendance has increased by 2% since 2015, even taking a spike of participation in 2017 into consideration. *Data from ABTS

  4. Focus on European Medical Meetings • The more vocal meeting planner partners are largely based in Europe with European attendees. We collected survey results from 57 meeting planner clients to collect data; two-thirds of our respondents represent groups wholly based or headquartered in Europe. • European-based delegations hold the largest market share of international participation in the large citywide medical conferences analyzed. • While we acknowledge the presence sand appeal of Latin American and Asian medical meetings, the scope of our comparison is focused on Europe in response to agency feedback. • Now that we have established the numbers behind the decline in international participation, we will take a closer look into three dimensions of medical meeting planning to understand cause and affect: • Compliance issues • Cost of international travel • Scientific content

  5. 1 COMPLIANCE

  6. Phasing Out of Direct Sponsorship Grants • Higher cost • Sponsors must pre-purchase registration and lodging in order to offer grants on an open platform without firm numbers • Lower ROI for sponsors • Take longer/more complicated • Introduction of more parties between sponsors and healthcare providers

  7. Code of Compliance • Event Program • Schedule of scientific sessions and relevance of medical practice • Geographic Location • Should not be main attraction, nor selected as host during seasonal vacation periods • Ease of access • Event Venue • Business-oriented vs. recreation-oriented • Accommodation • Variety of categories, avoiding luxury amenities • Pricing to cover breakfast and taxes in line with industry per diems • Registration packages • Fees to cover scientific program, authorized activities and hospitality • No guest packages • Exhibit hall • Only open to those with legitimate interest in the program • Networking/social events • Outside of program schedule and paid for separately • Should not overlap or interfere with scheduled scientific programming https://www.ethicalmedtech.eu/conference-vetting-system/assessment-criteria/

  8. 2 COST

  9. Registration rates are publicly sourced from conference websites Conversion rates from https://www.ofx.com/en-us/forex-news/historical-exchange-rates/yearly-average-rates/

  10. Getting More for Less American hotel rates are clustered between $300-$400, with 3-diamond rated properties representing the majority of hotels offered. By contrast, Europe’s hotel rates are clustered in the $200-$300 range and are mostly rated 4-star. The bubbles represent the hotels offered in each city, divided by category. The bottom axis line stands in for “unrated” properties. Methodology: rates presented in the chart are the inclusive rates offered by official conference housing. Hotels have been ranked using their local rating system, as advertised in housing websites. All European prices were converted using the average conversion for the year the conference took place.

  11. Perception of Value and Hotel Stars Europe North America No regulation; authority of the rating agency dependent on its reputation (AAA/CAA, Forbes) Rating system requires hotels to meet minimum criteria to classify under a specific category, but also measuring the quality of the product and services rendered Ex: AAA Three Diamond: ”These establishments appeal to the traveler with comprehensive needs. Properties are multifaceted with a distinguished style, including marked upgrades in the quality of physical attributes, amenities, and level of comfort provided.” Meeting attendees traveling to North America do not realize that the hotel rankings assigned to their accommodation are also considering the quality of the facility. Many European criteria to qualify as a four-star property are amenities Americans would consider standard business needs. • Harmonized criteria set forth by HOTREC, the umbrella Association of hotels, restaurants, bars and cafes and similar establishments in Europe, which brings together 43 National associations in 31 countries, and is the voice of the hospitality industry in Europe. • Rating system requires hotels to meet minimum criteria to classify under a specific category • Ex: Hotelstars 3 Stars: “Reception opened 14 hours, accessible by phone 24 hours from inside and outside, bilingual staff • Lounge suite at the reception, luggage service on demand • Beverage offer in the room • Telephone in the room • hair-dryer, cleansing tissue • Dressing mirror, adequate place or rack to put the luggage/suitcase • Sewing kit, shoe polish utensils, laundry and ironing service • Additional pillow and additional blanket on demand • Systematic complaint management system” https://businessblog.trivago.com/star-categorization-market-comparison/ https://www.hotelstars.eu/ https://ww2.aaa.com/aaa/common/tourbook/diamonds/whatisthis.html

  12. Client Survey Results 4

  13. Client Survey Results • Client Comments • “Another challenge for some of the medical conferences is the demand of room block; blocked dates. It becomes more expensive if we have to pay for more nights than we need. This affects the overall cost and the clients total budget for the specific congress.” • “Accommodation offer must be sent out earlier” • “The proximity to the convention center, cost, and ability to secure a large enough block are most important to us. It is difficult to manage several attendees when they're spread across various hotels.”

  14. 3 SCIENCE

  15. Leveling Up As meetings outside the US invite US thought leaders to their meeting • it adds credibility to their meeting • makes it easier to attract other high-profile speakers • reduces the need for learners to travel to the US to have access to US thought leaders This creates competition for exhibitors, sponsors, and learners. Advances in communication technology • Online education • Content is broadcast globally

  16. RECOMMENDATIONS

  17. Compliance • Make the grant process seamless • Manage your marketing - focus on the science and education • Create a preliminary program as early as possible: • to apply early for CVS • to establish the grant process • Make sure you are meeting compliance regulations requirements: • Have an accessible hotel block • Price concerns, inclusive of taxes, fees, and porterage • Include breakfast and transportation • Double/doubles allowing for colleagues to share accommodation • Keep housing open late 1

  18. Cost • Cost-effective hotel blocks - open early! • Consider the cost of the entire package • Make registration simple - don’t ask for registration before hotel reservation! • Consider host city’s accessibility for international travelers: visas and flight path • Market to international markets through joint partnerships with sister societies • Consider second-tier cities 2

  19. Science • Seeks speakers with diverse experiences to share knowledge • Include non-US speakers • Partner with international medical associations to create joint meetings, programs, and sessions “While we have financial goals, we also have a responsibility to disseminate and share information that advances patient care. Instead of competing, help one another and create global unity.” ~ABTS’ association client. 3

  20. Why Second-tier Cities? Perception is not nearly as important as cost and accessibility. Break the cycle of the usual rotation of cities. Attendance elevates a city’s ranking as a conference host, as well as development in convention center and hotel rooms. All cities on this list meet at least the "Sufficiency" criteria of the GaWC*, with strong economy, infrastructure, and human interest. *Globalization and World Cities Research Network Data from meetingsource.com

  21. Q&A Angel Napolitano Executive Vice President Client Operations napolitano@abtscs.com

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