Are you going to attend a travel trade show? Think again.
Courtesy: Further East
After nearly three years of hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Asia’s travel sector is poised to bounce back in 2023. One of the key activities that travel professionals missed out on during the pandemic was connecting at trade shows.
WHY IT MATTERS
These events have been crucial in establishing new business relationships, locating new partners, launching new products, and sharing knowledge.
If you plan to attend trade shows in 2023, you may be wondering whether you should go back to the ones you attended before the pandemic or look for new ones to attend.
What has been encouraging in recent years is that more events are incorporating sustainability into their discussions, and there are new events that are solely dedicated to sustainable and/or regenerative travel.
However, in today's hyper-vigilant society, brands would be wise to reconsider the benefits and drawbacks of attending these events.
In this article, we will discuss the benefits and drawbacks of trade show attendance for sustainable travel brands, as well as provide examples of trade shows to consider.
Benefits of attending trade shows
Attending trade shows allows travel brands to reach a large number of people.
Trade shows provide an excellent opportunity to showcase your brand, products, and services to a large audience while also exploring potential business opportunities. These events are ideal for gaining attention and visibility in ways that are not possible online.
Face-to-face interaction allows for conversations that are difficult to replicate virtually. At a physical event, travel professionals can quickly and efficiently make contact with key stakeholders and potential customers, as well as get a sense of the energy and culture that are fueling the sector.
Another significant advantage of attending trade shows is the opportunity to network with value-aligned professionals and learn from best practices.
At trade shows, you have easy access to industry experts who can provide valuable insights into trends, technologies, and strategies. When you make the right contacts, it can lead to increased visibility for the brand, as well as opportunities for collaborations and partnerships.
Drawbacks of attending trade shows
One of the biggest challenges is the cost.
Trade shows can be expensive to attend, with costs that include attendance fees, booth rental, travel, accommodation, and staffing expenses. This can be a significant barrier for SMEs and consultants that may not have a large budget.
Another common source of concern is the environmental impact of air travel and waste management.
You've probably seen images of extremely heavy plane traffic arriving and departing from international conferences like the Conference of Parties on Climate Change (COP) to the World Economic Summit in Davos. Critics have descended upon the unnecessary travel that occurred, as well as the fact that financial and human resources could have been better allocated.
Many people have been drawn to recent stories about Europe-based sustainable travel experts taking low-carbon modes of transport such as trains to attend international conferences. However, if you are traveling from one country to another on the vast Asian continent, you will almost certainly need to take a flight.
If you decide to travel by plane, consider how you can lower your flying footprint.
In addition, most exhibitors are required to construct a stand or booth to showcase their brand at these trade shows. In today's attention economy, it is expected that one will strive to outperform others by constructing a bigger and edgier booth. Most building materials would most likely be discarded in a landfill after use, with no thought given to recycling or repurposing.
For this reason, environmentally conscious exhibitors should consider how to source materials and manage waste, as well as whether to build a booth at all.
Trade shows can be crowded and chaotic, with an intense schedule that makes it difficult for brands to stand out.
The author has attended large-scale travel trade shows in a variety of capacities - a brand representative, a speaker/panelist, and a media member. Speaking from experience, most exhibitors want to win over your attention at a trade show.
The event's intense competition and fast-paced nature, combined with limited time and space, can create a high-pressure environment that makes it difficult for attendees to focus on meaningful conversations.
Most of the time, following up on initial meetings is required before seeing the benefits of attending a trade show.
If you decide to participate in a trade show, BELOW are some of trade shows THAT Asia-based sustainable travel professionals CAN CONSIDER.
International Sustainable Travel Mart, Silang, Cavite, Philippines, March 29 - Apr 2, 2023
It is the first green travel mart and selling fair presented by the Asian Ecotourism Network (AEN), a regional initiative of the Global Ecotourism Network (GEN). Some of this year’s topics will include ecotourism standards (ecolodge and destination) and certification, and ecotourism as a biodiversity conservation tool.
GSTC2023 Global Conference, Antalya, Turkey, May 15-18, 2023
This year’s conference will be a mixture of panel discussions and interactive workshops with international and national experts in sustainable tourism as speakers.
At last year’s conference, speakers shared insights into many key topics including Climate change’s influence on tourism operations, carbon-neutral cities, sustainable luxury hospitality, sustainability in corporate & business travel, and businesses influencing supply chains. GSTC made the recordings of the discussions available online.
Further East, Bali, Indonesia, November 6-9, 2023
The focus for Further East 2023 will be on cementing the ‘New Horizons’ theme, encouraging delegates to think beyond what the luxury market in the APAC region looks like now, and instead focus on what it can look like in the future.
This year, the organizer This is Beyond will also be holding the inaugural Further East Leadership Summit in the days leading up to the show, inviting a select group of leaders to come together and discuss the future of high-end APAC travel.
Destination Mekong Summit, Location TBC, December 2023
This year’s topics will be centered on the theme of 'Mekong in Motion, Mekong Emotions'.
Last year’s program featured eight thematic panel sessions, three of them being led by supporting partners - World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), Child Protection in Travel and Tourism (ECPAT) International, and Beyond Retail Business (BRB).
We run a publicly available calendar of trade shows that may be of interest to sustainable travel professionals.
Once you’ve decided on attending a trade show, USE our 9-step guide to make the most of the Experience.
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