On the show floor

• Giveaways are down. We even were looking for a pen at some point, and it took a while to find it. If you remember, stands were full of pens, key chains and promotional paper notebooks a few years ago.
• USBs are everywhere. The change from huge, heavy catalogues to electronic versions on USBs is clearly underway. Good news for the planet.
• Catering. We saw two trends here: organic or healthy food on the one hand, and sophistication on the other one. The typical biscuits and old-style canapés are out.
• Sustainable stands. It´s getting easier and easier to find cool sustainable options, carton furniture, etc. Reusable is in, especially for stands.
• Innovation is another buzzword.  Companies and destinations are getting more creative in their positioning, and press campaigns getting more surprising. In our saturated market, one has to outsmart rivals. 

In events and meetings

• Virtual communities, created specifically for the event, are one of the clearest technological trends. Upon registration, the delegates can communicate with speakers and other delegates. A number of registration companies, such as Amiando, SoftCongres and Chance2Meet, have made this step. The event starts before the physical meet-up.
• Mobile technology is coming on. iPad is a new frequent option, of course, but more broadly, technological options have to be compatible with smartphones.
• Face-to-face is still strong. Virtual technology is on the rise, as the WWTW made clear. But direct contact clearly rules, as anyone who created or strengthened relationships during this show can certify.
• Demand for new formats. The Meeting Architecture movement asked for cool case studies of innovative meetings, formats which really help achieve the meeting´s goal in an unconventional way. The fact they had to call for such cases indicates the scarcity of innovation in meeting formats. There´s still work to be done!
• Shorter lead times. This dramatic trend, especially in the corporate sector, conditions the work of players all along the value chain.
• Risk-sharing schemes... with associations. Glasgow and Estoril announced breakthrough initiatives in that sense. Venues and destinations, aware of the risk that lower attendance poses to meetings, decided that they can share the risk with the organiser, limit the fixed cost of the congress, and spread the benefits if all goes well. This is for us the most promising innovation, as all parties involved have to row in the same direction.