Cvent: 70-Plus Percent of European Event Organizers Will Prioritize In-Person Components

More than two-thirds of meeting organizers surveyed in
Cvent’s 2022 Q1 Planner Sourcing Report: Europe Edition said the majority of
their 2022 events would have in-person components, with hybrid events having
the biggest slice of the event pie. By contrast, 25 percent of respondents said
the majority of their 2022 events would be virtual. 

Meeting technology platform provider Cvent commissioned
independent research company Censuswide to survey more than 500 event planners,
managers, coordinators and directors across the U.K. and Western Europe. The
sample represented a broad range of industry sectors: architecture, engineering
and building; arts and culture; education; finance; healthcare; HR; IT and
telecomnunications; legal, retail, catering and leisure; sales, media and marketing and
travel and transport. 

The report cited regional differences across Europe in
relation to plans for in-person and hybrid event volumes. Sixty percent of event
organizers in Spain cited hybrid as their main event strategy for 2022. Forty-eight
percent of U.K. respondents said the same, but plans for hybrid dropped in
Italy and Germany, where 38 percent and 37 percent, respectively cited hybrid
as their 2022 event strategy of choice. 

In contrast, 59 percent of Netherlands-based organizers prioritized
in-person gatherings, whereas 45 percent in France preferred virtual for the
majority of their 2022 events. 

Even if in-person events aren’t the primary strategy across
the board in Europe, 71 percent of organizers said they were currently sourcing
venues for events with in‐person components, and 66 percent of those planners said
they will hold events in the first half of 2022. Moreover, 68 percent of planners
say they have more budget for in‐person and hybrid events than they did in
2019.

That said, organizers may be looking to spend that extra
budget on tech and production enhancements. Respondents across the U.K. and
Europe said they would prioritize  on‐site production and tech expertise and venue/meeting
room rates. Sixty-two  percent said they
plan to increase spending for event management software or technology in 2022.