This document summarizes a webinar about benchmarking the modern meeting planner. It discusses findings from a Georgetown University study about who meeting planners are, how many events they manage per year, what factors are important in selecting venues, how technology is used, and 10 tips for thinking like a modern planner. Key points include that the average planner manages 37 events and 45 site visits per year, location and cost are top factors for selecting venues, and social media and mobile apps are increasingly important technologies for planners.

1. Benchmarking the
Modern Meeting Planner
Backed in part by a Georgetown University validated study.
#MMPWebinar

3. The #1 software
for planners
and properties
to collaborate
online.
#MMPWebinar

5. We envision a world where people
get together to achieve great things.

6. 350
Planners
#MMPWebinar
Total Events Managed Each Year
About the Survey:

7. Agenda
#MMPWebinar
● Who is the Modern Meeting Planner?
● How Many Events Is the Average Planner Managing Each Year?
● What Do Planners Today Care About When Selecting a Venue?
● How Are Planners are Leveraging Mobile Technology Today?
● 10 Ways to Think Like a Modern Meeting Planner

8. #MMPWebinar
Demographics:
Who is the Modern Meeting Planner?

9. Demographics
#MMPWebinar
Famale
78%Male
22%
Demographics:
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

10. #MMPWebinar
100,000 10%
More Than
Planners Are Currently
Employed in the US
Growing By 10%
Over the Next Decade
Faster than Average Compared to
Other Industries in Aggregate
Demographics
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

11. #MMPWebinar
Demographics
Rank Metropolitan Area Average Annual Wage
1. Coeur d'Alene, ID $69,210
2. Bridgeport, CT $69,080
3. Napa, CA $68,030
4. Hartford, CT $66,840
5. San Francisco, CA $66,250
6. Washington, DC $66,040
7. San Jose, CA $65,410
8. Silver Spring, MD $65,250
9. New York, NY $64,400
10. Boston, MA $64,360
Top 10 Cities by Average Annual Wage
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
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12. #MMPWebinar
Demographics
Rank State Employment per 1,000 Jobs
1. District of Columbia 3.46
2. Colorado 1.05
3. New York 1.03
4. Maryland 1.01
5. Virginia 1.00
Top States by Employment Concentration
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
#MMPWebinar

13. #MMPWebinar
Rank Industry Employment
1. Travel & Hospitality 9.3%
2. Political, Business, and Corporate 9.2%
3. Third Party Planning Firms 6.6%
4. Universities, Museums, and Higher Education 5.4%
5. Arts, Sports and Entertainment 5%
Top Industries for Meeting & Event Planners
Demographics
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

14. #MMPWebinar
The Legwork:
Just how Busy is the Modern Meeting Planner?

15. RFPs
Reg
Speakers
Room
Block
Signage
Menus
Surveysdiagram
s
#MMPWebinar

16. #MMPWebinar
37
Events
Planned
Each
Year
The Legwork:

17. 56%
Events Require
a Site Visit
21
Events Per Year
Require a Site Visit
Total Visits Per
Event
2.15
#MMPWebinar
The Legwork:

18. #MMPWebinar
45
Total
Site
Visits
Each
Year
The Legwork:

19. #MMPWebinar
Hours100 Each Year
The Legwork:

20. #MMPWebinar
How do we stay on top of
so many events?
The Legwork:

21. No
The short answer is...
#MMPWebinar
When should you say “No”...
● Client Asks for A New Timeline
● Client Wants to Change the
Diagram
● Client Wants to Be a Planner
● You’re Being Treated as a
Personal Assistant
● When You Can Leave Clients
Happy Anyway
The Legwork:

22. #MMPWebinar
What’s Important?
Why Planners Select a Venue

23. #MMPWebinar
What Planners Find Important
1. Location
2. Cost
3. Look and Feel
4. Other
5. Amenities
Why do planners select a venue?
#MMPWebinar

24. #MMPWebinar
What Planners Find Important
What Properties Think
Is Important to Planners
1. Location 1. Location
2. Cost 2. Look and Feel
3. Look and Feel 3. Other
4. Other 4. Amenities
5. Amenities 5. Cost
Why do planners select a venue?
#MMPWebinar

25. #MMPWebinar
Planners and properties
are misaligned.

26. #MMPWebinar
3 Tools to Get Back on the Same Page
Communicate:
Ditch Email with Slack
slack.com
Delegate:
Prioritize and Assign
Tasks with Asana
asana.com
Visualize:
Collaborate on
Diagrams and Room-sets
socialtables.com
HipChat Trello MeetingMatrix

27. #MMPWebinar
Going Digital?
Where Technology is Trending for Modern Planners

28. #MMPWebinar
Stuck in Our Ways
How Planners Record Information
61%Of planners still use a pen and
notepad as a primary method to
record information.
Rank Recording Information
1. Pen and Paper
2. Other
3. Tablet
4. Smart Phone
5. Desktop (Word)

29. 50%
#MMPWebinar
Of meeting planners...
Said that the
primary way they
discover and
research venues
is online.
Technology:
Losberger Research

30. #MMPWebinar
35%
27%
Of planning firms are increasing their
budget for mobile event apps in 2016.
Of increased budgets will go primarily
towards app developement.
Technology:
Losberger Research

31. #MMPWebinar
Social Media Beyond Event Promotion
● Ideation: Social communities are filled
with organic feedback.
● Planning: Connect with other planners and
pick their brains.
● Event Marketing: Test streaming tech like
Facebook Live, before or during events.
● Attendee Engagement: Think of Twitter as
a platform for Q&A. Boost engagement /
virality at the same time.
● Post Event: Think of the event as the
source of content, to promote yourself and
future events.
87%Of planners are leveraging social media
on mobile devices to promote events.
Technology:
Losberger Research

32. #MMPWebinar
9 Ways to Think Like a
Modern Meeting Planner

33. #MMPWebinar
Become Best
Friends with Data
1. Experiment with measuring NPS.
2. Surprise stakeholders with metrics.
3. Backup your ideas with data.

34. 1. Find inspiration outside of the events world.
2. Lean on your creative partners. Challenge them
and you’ll be surprised.
3. Be deliberate about every design detail.
#MMPWebinar
Creativity
is Key

35. 1. Pick a destination based on the message it sends.
2. Leverage the CVB.
3. Integrate cultural learnings into your destination
event.
#MMPWebinar
Unleash Your Inner
Anthropologist

36. 1. Encourage social interactions throughout the
event.
2. Remember everything is a backdrop for a photo.
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Pics, Or It
Didn’t Happen

37. 1. Pay it forward.
2. Find mentors and serve as a mentee.
3. Ask for introductions.
#MMPWebinar
Find People You
Trust and Grow
Your Network

38. #MMPWebinar
Be Proactive,
Ask and You
Shall Receive
1. Ask properties to offer you a customized site visit,
specific to your event.
2. Have partners join you on site visits.

39. 1. Invest in your learning.
2. Volunteer your time with an industry organization.
3. Remember that learning happens outside of your
comfort zone.
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If You Rest,
You Rust

40. 1. Ask about sustainability programs at the venues
you’re working with.
2. Use it as a selling point, promote your event as a
“Green Event”.
#MMPWebinar
Make Meetings &
Events Green Again

41. 1. Set goals for yourself.
2. Find an accountability partner.
#MMPWebinar
Be a Hero, Save the Day
(and Do It Over Again)

42. #MMPWebinar
Thank you!