New report by Marketing Challenges International reviews the characteristics, challenges, and strategies for marketing to a new generation of North American meeting planners
Global destinations will require a significant shift in digital strategy if they are to successfully market to a new generation of North American meeting planners, according to a new white paper released by Marketing Challenges International (MCIntl). The report, “Destination Marketing: The New Wave,” explains how the Millennial generation’s relationship with technology and new media has strongly influenced the way they research and plan events, and how that influence has expanded across all generations.
“Destination Marketing: The New Wave” features interviews and anecdotes from Millennial senior meeting planners, as well as thought leaders from Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA) and The Kliman Group.
“What we discovered in our research is that Millennial meeting planners are fundamentally no different from other generations in their core values and desires,” says Michel Couturier, President of MCIntl. “However, technology has changed, and Millennials happen to have the strongest relationship to digital media of all generations. It’s that relationship and mindset that we need to understand in order for convention bureaus to evolve their marketing strategies.”
The research concludes that rather than marketing to Millennials specifically, convention bureaus should “think like Millennials when developing marketing programs.” The report outlines three “Millennial Mindsets” related to digital technology and explains how they should influence strategy.
The report provides various examples and recommendations that global convention bureaus can adopt when targeting North American meeting planners. Strategies include how to better adapt a destination website to an increasingly mobile workforce, how to create more engaging and interactive resources for event attendees, and how to utilize content marketing to build better relationships with planners.
“Destination Marketing: The New Wave” is part of a series of reports by MCIntl providing global destinations with the latest research and trends on the North American meetings and conventions market. Last year the company released an analysis on content marketing for business event destinations.
