According to a recent study conducted by PKF Hospitality Research in conjunction with Convention South magazine, 64 percent of meeting planners are planning the same number of meetings in 2007 as they did last year, but they expect greater attendance at these meetings. The combination of rising attendance and higher prices (more than half of the planners surveyed said they planned to spend more on their events this year than last) means that hotels can expect to get more money per meeting.
Sixty-three percent of planners surveyed, however, also said that they were looking to cut costs, mostly in off-site events (36 percent), food and beverage (32 percent), and audiovisual (24 percent). Less than one-fourth said they thought they could slim down their guest room rates, and only 17 percent thought they could get a break on meeting room rental fees. Second- and third-tier cities also are looking more attractive these days to 40.3 percent of the planners surveyed, compared to 31 percent in 2004 and 35 percent in 2005.
Click here for more on the survey.