The more things change, the more some things stay the same. A new report from Development Counsellors International (DCI) highlights the changes, challenges and trends taking place within the meetings and events industry while showing that the power of face-to-face interactions remains strong.

IMEX America 2018, billed as the industry’s largest trade show in the United States, broke its own records for success. Held Oct. 16-18 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas, this was the show’s eighth year in Las Vegas.   

The show statistics, provided by IMEX, are impressive:

Today is opening day for IMEX America 2018, the country’s worldwide exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events. Held annually at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas, this year's IMEX America runs Oct. 16 – 18.

Today, Oct. 15, 2018, is Smart Monday, powered by MPI — the educational session-based precursor to IMEX America. Approximately 1,000 event professionals are gathered at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas, making this year’s Smart Monday bigger than that of any previous year.

Steady growth is the meetings and event industry’s “new normal” according to the American Express Meetings & Events (M&E) 2019 Global Meetings and Events Forecast, released today at IMEX America.

More than two million pets and other live animals are transported by air every year in the U.S. While the U.S. Department of Transportation offers guidelines, each airline establishes its own company policy for the proper handling of the animals they transport.

Demand for meetings and events is on the rise. According to the recently released CWT Meetings & Events 2019 Meetings & Events Future Trends report, the meetings market will see an increase of five to ten percent in 2019.

A little over a year ago, we started planning the content and format for Corporate Event News. On Sept. 20, 2017, the publication was officially launched as a platform to bring relevant and timely news, data, tools and information to corporate event professionals around the globe.

Thank you for reading the articles and blog posts, and contributing your thoughts, ideas and suggestions. A number of you took the time to respond to our July reader survey, and the results may interest you.  

Event marketing fuels rapid revenue growth for enterprise companies, according to a new study by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services and Splash, a New York City-based provider of end-to-end event marketing software.

Titled, “The Event Marketing Evolution: An Era of Data, Technology, and Revenue Impact,” the report confirms a new era for event marketers in which high-performing companies are investing more in event technology and accurately tying event activity to actual revenues or profits.

In the wake of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, addressing workplace harassment has never been more important or timely, including in the events industry. To address this pressing issue, the Events Industry Sexual Harassment Task Force will be hosting its first webinar on Sept. 26 at 11 a.m. ET, which is free and open to the public, with attendance within the events industry encouraged.