Younger Attendees Are Now Front and Center. Have You Adapted?
March 18, 2019SHARE:
If you can believe this, Generation Z has entered the workforce. The year 1996 marked the start of Generation Z, so the oldest ones are now out of college and nearly a year into their roles as sales reps who are trying to exceed quota, or as non-sales employees who must continually learn on the job to stay effective.
For meeting and incentive-program planners, this means the events they plan must reflect the fact that there are now attendees who don’t know what life was like before Google would answer just about every question you can throw at it; before Amazon would deliver just about anything you want right to your door; and before YouTube, Netflix, Hulu and other streaming applications would allow you to watch whatever you want, whenever you want.
We knew it was coming—but now it’s here. Starting this year, business events must appeal to the growing legions of digital natives who are used to maximum convenience in a minimum amount of time. This means that event websites must be highly functional and not static even for a few days at a time; event apps must be robust for social interaction and have same-day response to attendee questions; and on-site event technology must be not just interactive but immersive to give these young attendees experiences they remember—in a good way.
On the other hand, in-person events are also a great opportunity to provide interpersonal experiences to tech-immersed people that they don’t have as often anymore. Consider these possibilities for human connection: Small-group discussions during breakout sessions; teambuilding scavenger hunts around a property followed by a dine-around that’s broken into smaller groups; and early-morning jogs or yoga or fruit-smoothie tastings by the pool. All of these ideas build attendee bonds in a way that more and more people are not getting in their everyday lives.
That’s where the power of in-person meetings and incentives lies these days. And we at AIC Hotel Group are ready to help you maximize that power with creative event ideas that we’ve executed at the many meetings and incentive programs coming through our group-oriented properties on the eastern and western coasts of Mexico, in the Dominican Republic, and in Miami. The result: All your attendees—younger and older alike—will feel the impact of your event for a long time after it ends, and they will look forward to the next one.
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