New York. Vanessa Cotton, Chair Reed Travel Exhibitions Meetings and Incentives comments on AIBTM 2010: “We at Reed Travel Exhibitions are delighted to be adding AIBTM to our international meetings portfolio, which includes EIBTM in Barcelona, GIBTM in Abu Dhabi, CIBTM in Beijing and AIME in Melbourne.
AIBTM has come about following nearly two years of research. We have talked to all sectors of the industry who confirmed there was a real need for an event to take place in the US; for the industry to come together for best business and networking opportunities and best professional education – brand values that have proved successful for all our events around the world. And we are delighted that the industry’s leading associations are supporting AIBTM, continuing their relationship with RTE developed and nurtured over many years. These include ASAE, PCMA, MPI, SITE, ICCA and AIPC to name just a few.
But AIBTM is not just a replication of our other events; it is very much tailor made targeted at America and created to suit the needs of the America market. It aims to become the industry’s major annual event in the US – designed to provide meeting and event professionals in all sectors – association, corporate, government and third party – with quality interaction with over 300 North American and international exhibitors. We are looking to attract 500 Hosted Buyers, of which 100 will come from outside America and around 2,500 trade visitors made up of largely North American based meeting planners with domestic, interstate business.
Core to AIBTM will be an unprecedented range of high quality educational experiences. And it is education and knowledge that sets us apart from other events for the industry, as we aim to equip the US buyer and supplier community with the tools to create more effective meetings and events of their own. This will be achieved by the creation of a new, high impact America Meetings Week, initiated by Reed Travel Exhibitions and supported by a wide range of industry organisations.
So what will America Meetings Week comprise?
· A high profile conference designed for the North American community
· A series of industry events which in the past would normally have taken place elsewhere in North America at different times of year but will now run alongside AIBTM in Baltimore
· A CEO Summit bringing together the heads of the largest and most influential buyers and suppliers in the marketplace, including domestic and international hotel chains and airlines, to discuss future trends and issues
· An Awards programme and presentation ceremony to recognise the most innovative people and practices in the US meetings and events industry today
· Concurrent educational sessions, throughout each of the three days, designed specifically for decision makers from all industry sectors
· The launch of the findings of a major new research programme.
With Reed Exhibitions expertise in the US and Reed Travel Exhibitions considerable experience targeting the international meetings and events sector sector, AIBTM has a further advantage over other shows in the US. It will be held on the East Coast of North America in Baltimore.
Why Baltimore? A number of reasons. Its proximity and ease of access to the vast eastern seaboard meeting and events community – an estimated 13,000 meeting buyers are located in states within three hours of Baltimore. These include Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, New York, Delaware and Pennsylvania, which means we are hitting key cities such as New York, Washington DC (the hub for associations) and Philadelphia, home to major agencies such as Maritz.
Buyers can easily come to AIBTM in a day in the knowledge that they can achieve their business objectives and easy, convenient, low cost travel means that those planners whose organisations will not allow them to accept hospitality will also be able to attend. Last but by no means least, Baltimore itself is a business focussed city – a choice in tune with the mood of the times.
Well that is AIBTM in a nutshell. It is a truly exciting time for Reed and AIBTM. I look forward to keeping you updated on further AIBTM developments and welcoming you to Baltimore in June 2011.
