The good news is that congresses have not been affected by the economic crisis. According to the ICCA, the International Congress and Convention Association, 8394 events took place in 2009, 800 more than in 2008. The strength of the association sector, combined with a greater number of ICCA members reporting their figures, explains these results. However, not all events are included in this study. Only events with more than 50 participants, which must be held regularly and in at least three countries, are taken into account. As a result, when it comes to the rankings by country, the top three have not changed. The top three are, in order: the United States, Germany and Spain. France, on the other hand, has dropped two places, from fourth to sixth, to Italy, while Greece and Finland have entered the top 20.
In terms of cities, for the fifth year running, Vienna in Austria came first, with 21 more meetings than in 2008. By contrast, Paris, which took first place in 2008, is now in third place, just four events behind Barcelona. Last but not least, there is a newcomer to the ranking: Madrid in thirteenth place. The Spanish capital hosted 87 congresses, 33 % more than in 2008; 50.6 % were European events, with an average of 400 participants per event. The fact that Madrid is a modern, cultural, well-connected and safe city, with the added bonus of a sunny climate, often makes all the difference compared to other competing European cities. And Madrid intends to boost its appeal to conference-goers by building a new international conference centre in the near future.
Accessibility and unity of location
For Christian Mutschlechne, from the Vienna Convention Bureau, "Vienna's success is due to its accessibility, its congress infrastructures grouped together in a compact city where it is easy to find your way around. Vienna's attractiveness also plays a major role".
To maintain its leadership, Vienna has launched a number of projects, including the opening of new hotels, the expansion of its metro network and the construction of a new central station to replace the four existing stations. "It's one of the few European cities to have such a unity of place. There is, however, one condition: not to exceed 10,000 participants", says Armel Blandin, deputy director of Ormès.
For example, Ormès, which recently organised an operation in Barcelona, received complaints from delegates because the convention centre was located outside the Catalan city. For Émmanuel Dupart, Deputy Director of France Congrès, French convention cities should take a leaf out of the Austrian capital's book. "We need to be even more united and organised in order to attract new bids together. This work should be done quickly thanks to the Atout France team. But when it comes to major congresses, it's essential to sell France as a destination as a whole before promoting a particular city, otherwise we risk losing the market!
Strength in numbers
In Paris, for example, some fifteen hotel groups representing 475 establishments with a total of over 60,000 rooms in all categories in Paris and the surrounding region signed a charter last December on hosting major business events. The aim is to attract large-scale events to the French capital: more than 1,000 delegates over several days. At the same time, the Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau welcomes, informs and advises conference organisers and coordinates the various players in the market. In 2008, ten convention centres came together under the same banner: Viparis. This dynamic approach is bearing fruit. In 2009, the French capital hosted 930 conventions at nearly 200 venues, 30 more than in 2008. These events represented 700,000 delegates, or an average of 78 conventions per month, bringing together an average of 757 participants per event. For 48 %, the number of medical conferences is increasing every year. In addition, 39 new associations chose Paris to organise their very first meeting. However, as they did not meet the ICCA's criteria, they were not included in its rankings. In 2011, Paris will continue to host its biggest congress ever: the European Congress of the Society of Cardiology, with 30,000 participants. Also scheduled for 2014: the International Congress of Applied Psychology and, in 2016, the European Congress on Hypertension, each with 8,000 participants.
At the other end of France, to the south, the Riviera-Côte d'Azur Convention Bureau is also battling to attract delegates. Its arguments: accessibility, with France's second-largest international airport, a business airport and Europe's leading helicopter service. And to this we can add the region's high-performance infrastructure. Other assets include the Event Partners Club, which brings together some forty signatories and real expertise, particularly in the medical sector. "We know how to seek out customers, how to welcome them and how to challenge ourselves on a regular basis," says Évelyne Brusa-Priebe, head of the convention office. A number of renovation and extension projects are underway to ensure that we continue to offer a high-quality range of services. Like Nice-Acropolis, where almost €25 million of work is planned.
But European competition is tough. And with good reason: the economic spin-offs from these events are considerable. The average spend of a conference delegate is 321 euros per day, 50 % higher than that of a leisure tourist. In addition, congresses contribute to the international reputation of the destination; they are not very sensitive to the ups and downs of the economy and guarantee long-term business. Decisions are taken two to ten years in advance. Hence the race to invest in order to present the most attractive offer possible. Next January, Stockholm, ranked seventh by the ICCA, will open the Stockholm Waterfront, a brand new convention centre in the heart of the city that can accommodate up to 3,000 participants. And by the end of 2012, Stockholm is planning to open a further 2,000 rooms, as well as new direct air services. Henrik Von Arnold, Director of the Convention Bureau, adds: "According to the ICCA's criteria, the city hosted 102 international congresses, but taking into account European Commission meetings, we actually hosted 350 events, not counting corporate operations and national congresses. This summer, the Swedish capital hosted two major events, the European Society of Cardiology and Herbalife, with 25,000 and 10,000 participants respectively. These were followed this autumn by the European Association of Diabetes Societies, with 17,000 participants. To attract such congresses, it is imperative to be directly and easily accessible from all over Europe, if not the whole world. This is confirmed by Yvan Blanès, Associate Director at Connect Factory. "When an executive comes from New York to give a two-hour speech, it's essential to have direct flights. This is a determining factor in the choice of destination. Then comes the best value for money. Lisbon, for example, is very well placed on both counts.
The Portuguese capital is ranked eighth by the ICCA, ex-aequo with Amsterdam, and is determined to remain in the top 10 of European conference cities. After all, business tourism is the second most buoyant sector of Lisbon's tourism industry. Each year, a budget of 1076500 euros is allocated to this department, representing 29 % of the city's total tourism. More generally, business tourism is one of the ten products identified in the National Strategic Plan for Tourism, and the Lisbon region has been designated as a priority destination for developing this segment in Portugal.
To boost its appeal, the city is due to open a metro line to the airport. But the city's appeal also extends to a range of leisure activities. When Antoine Beucher from Action Première organised a seminar for 80 young salespeople in December 2010, he chose Berlin because "it has a reputation as a young city that combines discovery and festivities". It was also in line with his client's current situation, as it had just been taken over by an international group. By bringing its teams together in Germany, the company is also introducing them to an economically strong destination with which they will be working. The stability of the country is also one of the factors taken into account, as Clarice Denis, Associate Director of the Denis & Co agency, points out: "Bookings are made at least two years in advance, hence the importance of dealing with a destination that is economically and politically stable. In this case, it's difficult to opt for countries like Turkey or Greece...".
The benefits of stability
Athens, which is still reaping the benefits of the 2004 Olympic Games, is currently ranked twentieth by the ICCA. Shaken by the economic crisis, the government has taken steps to reassure businesses. "In the case of tourists stranded in our country as a result of social unrest or other imponderables due to the crisis, the State has decided to take charge of all the logistics of their stay and to waive taxes at regional airports, with the exception of Athens", explains Theodorus Chartomatsidis, Director of the Greek Tourist Office.
Sometimes the choice of destination is based on more personal commitments or implications. "For example, in the medical congress sector, as soon as a new president is elected, we automatically know that the event will take place in his own country. This decision was taken for practical reasons, but also because it is fashionable to thank one's electors", explains Armel Blandin. We are currently looking into the possibility of modelling ourselves on the United States, where congresses are fixed and held in the same city for several years. This policy has two advantages. On the one hand, it allows destinations to invest profitably in high-performance infrastructures, both in technical terms and in terms of capacity, but also to have good air and rail connections. Secondly, to offer events that take place in the best possible conditions. It's an idea that should gain ground and eventually spread across Europe.
