The study found that SMM
programs are increasingly being used by corporations. Over half (52%) of
respondents work for companies with an SMM program in place or in development.
Most of these respondents felt their company’s SMM programs have benefited
their organizations, enabling them to:
Increase their control
over cost savings (76%);
Streamline meetings and
event processes (76%);
And help better allocate
resources and savings (67%).
Of respondents without an
SMM program, 41% believe a program will be implemented by their company within
the next three years, underscoring the expansion of SMM programs in North America . However, despite the growing acceptance of
SMM programs, only 37% of respondents indicated that their programs were being
used to manage events globally. This represents a potential area of opportunity
for SMM, particularly for multinational organizations.
Executive Buy-In is Key
The study found that
support for SMM from company executives is essential, with 58% of respondents
noting that without executive buy-in, SMM programs would not succeed. Three in
five respondents (59%) from companies currently operating without SMM programs
said they would need initiatives led by senior leadership to establish them.
“Meetings professionals
need to demonstrate the value of SMM programs to corporate leadership. Leaders
who understand how SMM programs can help companies get the most out of their
meetings and events budgets are more likely to champion and develop these
programs,” said Joseph Bates, vice president of research at GBTA.
Meetings By The Numbers
To help illustrate the
benefits of SMM to corporate executives and improve meetings programs, meeting
professionals are increasingly using data and analytics to manage meetings.
Seventy percent of companies with an SMM program in place use technology to
gather data in order to manage their programs, in some cases developing
proprietary technology of their own. Top uses of data collection include:
Registering meetings (79%)
Registering attendees
(75%)
Providing detailed
reporting (72%)
Budgeting purposes (69%)
Sourcing venues (60%).
“Meetings require a large
investment for many companies, which is why SMM programs have been deployed.
Technology enables the capture of important data and analytics, but it’s up to
the meetings professionals to make informed, actionable decisions based on the
story that the data is telling, and to communicate the value of the overall
program to the C-level to ensure support,” said Kari Wendel, SMMC, senior
director, SMM Strategy + Solutions, CWT Meetings & Events.
GBTA surveyed 335 meetings
professionals in the U.S.
and Canada
from March-April.