The future of MICE, or business events, in Asia is looking very strong indeed, as many countries and cities not only add to their venue inventory but continue to grow their off-site offerings.
And, with stiff competition globally, their ability to keep up with the competition really is imperative. Gulf destinations including Dubai, and to a lesser extent, Abu Dhabi and Oman, are growing at a phenomenal rate. So too is India. And already the signs are strong that these destinations will keep attracting greater numbers of meetings and incentives delegates, as well as holidaymakers.
Infrastructure development in destinations including China and Macau is positive, and both of these destinations are seeing strong growth. Coupled with their historical attractions, their future is already looking positive. Despite a slight dip in conventions in 2006, Hong Kong is also looking strong, and will only continue to gather momentum, especially as more Chinese begin to experience the pleasures of travel.
The challenge in Asia is for tourism bureaux in each country and city to get the word out there to the global MICE community about what they are doing, and to keep MICE planners up-to-date on the very latest developments. This is going to take a considerable amount of effort, and indeed investment.
But it really has to be done. It is no good to simply build a new hotel or a new convention centre, or a new theme park, and expect delegates to fill it. Meeting and incentive planners from Australia, Europe and America not only have to know of these new developments but they also have to know what these new products mean to them – that is, why they should utilise them for their upcoming meetings, events or incentives.
As I said, competition globally is extremely fierce. Developments in the Gulf are phenomenal, and many meeting and incentive planners have jumped on the hype created by these destinations and booked business. The same has to be done in Asia to ensure that Asia continues to attract high-calibre business.
Marketing campaigns – advertising, media, e-mail marketing, public relations – must be developed in a unified way to tease meeting and incentive planners into learning more. Exhibiting at events like AIME in Melbourne, EIBTM in Barcelona and IMEX in Germany, are all imperative for Asian destinations to maximise the wonderful facilities they have, and the unique experiences they offer. Only then will Asia’s future be assured.
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