Have Conferences Become a Thing of the Past?

I've worked on the association side of training and believe there are a lot more factors in play below the surface (based on the original NY Times article). The sad fact is that conferences (especially international events, as was this one) are enormously expensive to conduct, even before the event opens. Far too many details are in play to specify here, but things like room guarantees, A/V and F&B deposits and other up-front fees quickly add up. Losing key sponsors just prior to the event can be devastating. It sounds to me as though several factors were probably in play here on top of those financial issues. For example, it's possible that registrations were lower than anticipated (affecting those up-front commitments) because this just isn't the year for international outsourcing, which some sources say has been in decline recently as more US firms turn internally for partners. So while I agree that organizations need to reconsider the benefits of their investment in attending or participating in such conferences, I'd add that it's premature to assume that conferences as a whole are an endangered species. Here's why: despite the 2008 economic collapse, many associations (with a heavy reliance on their annual conferences to help meet their expenses) actually saw increases in attendance in the year following and most others had at least the same number of attendees. This was despite an across-the-board cut in travel expense budgets for those attending. Why? Because many individuals embraced the opportunity to network -- just in case their job was the next thing to go. Professional development via the education events meant they were going to stay on top of the latest trends and products, keeping them -- and their organizations -- competitive. Vendors flocked because that one additional sale on down the road could have made the difference for that annual bottom line. As for actual sales at the trade show? Some organizations are prohibited from allowing it. Thinking of the trade show/expo as a way of making sales is -- quite frankly -- limiting. The company purchasing booth space that expects to make an $XXX return (especially within a specific period of time after the show) misses the point: the trade show is about making contacts, showing off the product or promoting the service, seeing what the competitors are up to, and meeting with current (even former) clients and customers to nurture those relationships. Quite honestly, if you were shopping for a multi-million dollar, customized LMS, would you make a commitment on a trade show floor after just meeting the rep and seeing a quick demo? Not likely. From the customer's point of view, the trade show/expo is an opportunity to see a lot of possibilities in a short amount of time and for a lot less $$ than it would take to visit every possible vendor outside of the expo. It's a fact-gathering mission for the potential customer. At the association where I used to work, the executive director said it best when he described the event as "creating the dance floor where the customer and vendors can meet." Sometimes you get asked to dance and sometimes you don't. But if you don't attend the dance at all, you most certainly won't get asked. Yes, conferences need to evolve -- just as the dance needs to keep up with the times -- but extrapolating one conference cancellation into a conclusion about the conference model overall is a stretch, and an inaccurate one at that.

I too have spent allot of time in the ‘conference/seminar’ ranks both as a participant and as an organizer. Wasn’t trying to put the traditional conference venue in a grave, but to point out that times are changing and that a change should be considered. Coming out of this economic situation is going to present a whole lot of new challenges aside from purely money - it also is a factor of time availability. I’m sure you have heard all of the arguments about ‘networking’ and value from face-presence in conferences. The reality from a management perspective is that they have social value but not much relates to real business value. I guess I would refute this to a limited degree by qualifying that it would be dependent upon the goal/mission/audience event that was being undertaken. Over time we will see, since it’s starting to show signs of application, whether the virtues or downsides of virtual conferences will be. For audiences in global outsourcing it’s a perfect vehicle to be explored and overcomes some of the phobia that exists between buyer/supplier contact. Thanks again for your comments and all the best.