The Decisions You Should Make for Your Meeting in November

A lot happened in October. Informa agreed to buy Clarion, a record-setting crowd gathered in Vegas for IMEX America, and we released a new report on the outlook for the global meetings landscape. Welcome back to the Monthly Decision Debrief — designed to help you make sense of everything from the past 31 days. Below, you’ll find a rundown of the most important stories with a clear understanding of what to consider changing because of them. — David McMillin

P.S. Speaking of decisions, the toughest decision made in our home is still pending. Will our four-year-old be an airplane or a construction vehicle for trick-or-treating? The verdict needs to be in by dusk. Happy Halloween!

— Add the contract clause that spells out what you’ll be paid if the venue backs out.

The Plaza Hotel will close in January 2027 for a restoration expected to last until at least 2031, taking its 282 rooms and the Grand Ballroom off the market. When Andrea Doyle asked who pays when the hotel is the one canceling, she found that planners often don’t have the same protection they negotiate for hotels. “You will seldom find this clause in a hotel’s first contract draft,” said SiteSelectionStrategist CEO Elizabeth Caragay. “You have to add it and insist on it.”

— Sit down with your boss to show exactly how much your costs have jumped.

Your CEO isn’t thinking about how much the centerpieces cost, but a new Event Price Index from Maritz offers a look at the tough realities: A domestic airfare once budgeted at $400 now needs about $650, and décor and entertainment costs are projected to rise 146% between 2019 and 2027. The solution isn’t always about spending more, though. Instead, it’s about rebuilding the program. One of Maritz’s automotive clients cut a three-day dealer meeting to two days and still met all of its objectives.

— Ask your sponsors what they’d rather pay for than a logo on the wall.

Barbara Scofidio talked with planners who are shifting sponsorships away from signage that no one reads and into experiences attendees actually remember, such as a speakeasy evening or a chance to tee off with John Daly. “I can’t think of a time where an attendee would walk away from an event wishing there was more sponsor signage,” said Just Right Destination Management’s Jennifer Gruebner.

— Find out what ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini know about your event.

This conversation is with someone different: a machine. According to research from Freeman, 20% of attendees have used AI to find events, and 53% of them say it changed which ones they considered. And AI can make some major mistakes. If your event website shuts down before launching the new edition with the new host city, AI may assume that the program is canceled.

— Share your agenda sooner.

Your attendees may have decided to come well before they register. New Freeman research found that 84% decide to attend at least four weeks before they sign up. What holds them back is missing information and strict cancellation policies; nearly 7 in 10 say a restrictive policy makes them register later. Freeman’s Ken Holsinger had blunt advice for organizers: “Stop hoarding information.”

— Put belonging in your post-event survey.

You know what isn’t fun at most events? Networking. “It feels inauthentic and like we’re trying to gain something,” Maritz senior design studio strategist Claire Lester said at IMEX America. But we all need it to accomplish what events are supposed to do: bring people together. Lester’s fix is to make connection a side effect of something else, like low-stakes conversation prompts on tables or one-on-one walking meetings. To find out whether it’s working, she recommends adding one simple question to your attendee surveys: “On a scale of 1 to 5, what level of belonging did you feel at this event?”

Stay tuned for a new report on the state of incentive travel that will launch in the middle of November, along with a webinar to unpack some of the key trends shaping experiences for top performers.

What a delight for the Skift Meetings team to have an opportunity to connect with some of the honorees on our Women Power Rankings list in Las Vegas.