Other events are driven by current topics (e.g., renewable energy), so the
quality of content and speakers is paramount.
There are a number of other formats, including one-to-one events in which
vendors pay for access to qualified buyers, industry awards dinners, and the
like.
 Training events, e.g., Fred Pryor, American Bar Association
These events are often driven by continuing professional development or
compliance needs, often mandated by individual professional organizations,
as well as general functional training. Events tend to be considerably smaller
than regular conferences, and many are trainer-led, as opposed to the
conference format. Events include a mix of “evergreen” topics and others that
shift with the times.
Training events are the most likely to overlap with Internet versions or e-
training. Forward-thinking businesses are moving towards an integrated
model, offering both physical and interactive content.
 CME-driven events, e.g., M/C Communications
Continuing medical education events form their own segment. These events
are driven by the need for clinicians to continue their education, and the need
to earn CME credits each year. CME events’ revenue derives from
educational grants from pharmaceutical companies and medical device
manufacturers.
The wealth of available pharmaceutical company grants has made the sector
attractive – for example, allowing M/C Communications to be sold less than
10 years after start-up for over $400 million.
Increased regulation and restrictions on how pharmaceutical companies can
support events have, however, recently taken some of the shine off the CME
sector.
 Consumer events, e.g., Comecon
The consumer events market is even more fragmented than the B2B market,
since consumer exhibitions cover a wide range of topics from broad-based
home shows to more specialist events, while consumers are much more likely
to be local/regional than professional and trade groups. As a rule of thumb,
the more focused the event and the more committed the consumer
(“prosumer”), the more resilient the event. Their interest is more easily
maintained than attendees at broad-based events, which, by contrast, can
suffer sharply during a slowdown.
Consumer events tend to be seasonal, creating a logistical headache for the
organizer, and are typically local or regional. Often, the organizer can
duplicate a successful brand geographically. For example, IMS, the consumer
motorcycle event, has now established about 20 events over the summer
months across the U.S. Affinity group has conducted a successful roll-up in
consumer events.
Consumer events share many of the characteristics of B2B events, but
typically enjoy lower margins as exhibit space is sold at a lower price and
attendee promotion is inherently more expensive. Interestingly, major media
groups with strong local and regional reach such as newspapers and radio
have not entered the sector in the U.S., although this practice has been a
profitable part of UK newspaper publishing for decades; for example, the
Daily Mail’s famous Ideal Home Show was founded in 1908.
15
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