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Another successful edition of the ICCA Research, Sales & Marketing Programme just took place in Malaga, Spain from 9-11 July. ICCA organised the three-day Programme, keeping in mind the special needs of the Generation X & Y attendees.
ICCA faced a special challenge as the 114 participants from 30 countries mainly represented Generation X (a term used to refer to a generational cohort born after the baby boom ended, extending from the early-to-mid 1960s to late 1970s) and Generation Y, also known as The Millennial Generation (1980-1990). The generation X & Y group is highly educated and independent, are seekers of new experiences and reward focused, networked and ready to contribute.
Project Manager Events Nigel Brown: “This Group is known to be engaged, involved and endlessly entertained and it is for this reason we selected the trendy Barcelo Hotel in a popular destination such as Malaga”.
Most participants already knew each other through the online community, which was specifically created for the event. Delegates could see who was coming, send messages to others, create their personal programme and could add their other online profiles such a LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter to the community.
The Programme consisted of short education sessions of one hour each with a variety of topics and interactivity ranging from setting up an ambassador programme, selling and re-branding a destination and corporate social responsibility to name just a few.
Delegates also had the opportunity to brush up their knowledge on the International Association Meetings Market. They attended ICCA Association Database Workshops, in addition to getting access to over 40 valuable business leads by attending the Business Exchange where they ‘speed-dated’ their way to more business. A special Request For Proposal track guided the attendants through five bid manuals of associations, immediately resulting in five leads to follow-up.
During the programme delegates could post their comments straight after the session so they could give instant feedback on the session they just attended, here are just a few of these comments:
Networking Skills: ‘One of the most interesting sessions I’ve ever been at.’
Language of Bidding: ‘Very enthusiastic speaker, very lively presentation and great interaction.’
Destination Marketing: ‘Excellent presentation on how to be creative on a small budget.’
The local hosts consisting of the Spanish National Tourist Board -Turespana-, Andalucia Tourist Board – Turismo Andaluz, Costa del Sol Convention Bureau and the Malaga Convention Bureau put together an outstanding social programme highlighting the destination and in the process created 114 ambassadors for the city and region.
The next edition of the ICCA Research, Sales & Marketing Programme will take place in Vilnius, Lithuania from 15-17 July 2010.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
