After the holidays comes the time to prepare for the biggest events of 2022. Were MICE destinations busy in July and August? Certainly not the ideal time, but at the same time an opportunity to stand out. Here is an overview of a selection of the most interesting promotional activities in the MICE industry and destinations.
Bring Yourself. We’ll do the same
At the beginning of the summer, the next instalment of the campaign Bring Yourself. We’ll do the same. This campaign was developed by the NBTC (The Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions) for the Belgian and German markets. Special boxes with holograms were set up at Antwerp and Mönchengladbach train stations, in addition to which selected people were invited for a spontaneous train journey to the Netherlands. Two Belgian couples and a German couple travelled to The Hague, Eindhoven and Flevoland for a programme full of surprises.
Bring Yourself. We’ll do the Same in Den Haag
Greener Cities, Cycling Lifestyle and Dutch Design were important themes of this campaign. The aim of this international campaign was to showcase lesser-known places, local professionals and enthusiasts and to reinforce the image of the Netherlands as a sustainable destination.
Bring Yourself Eindhoven lancering
#GCBRoadshow and German Destinations in Motion
We moved to Germany. The idea of the campaign is for a Germany Convention Bureau reporter to visit German cities and regions. I watched the series of videos with interest already a year ago on Youtube. Last year the series was called Destinations in Motion (60 videos, 12 cities) this year it was changed to #GCBRoadshow (20 videos, 4 cities).
GCB Roadshow #Stuttgart – Highlights aus Stuttgart
What I particularly appreciate about this initiative is that it showcases unique destinations, experiences and interviews with representatives of the local MICE industry – convention bureaux staff, PCOs – in short, video forms. This year it was Stuttgart and perhaps a little less known Jena, Kassel and Hannau.
GCB Roadshow #Jena – Kennen Sie Jena
Read also on my blog:
- Tweet or not to tweet? Twitter in the meetings industry
- AI powered destination marketing campaigns
- 61st ICCA Congress in Krakow – we did it!
- The Top 100 Most Influential People in the Event Industry and why am I here
- Convention bureau on social media – the best case studies
Industry Talks During the War
Despite the war with Russia on Ukrainian territory, the Lviv Convention Bureau does not stop providing up-to-date information about its country and Lviv. Representatives of the bureau took an active part, among others, in the Conventa Crossover in Ljubljana.
Also published on the bureau’s YouTube are the Industry Talks During the War series of interviews (including with Carina Bauer) and the MeetUAprofessionals series.
Carina Bauer (Industry talks during the war)
The latest August video features the story of the Lviv-based company Skeiron, which has applied the team’s experience and expertise in creating virtual tours to its new #SaveUkrainianHeritage project. Its aim is to create 3D copies of various historical sites, which will form the basis for the restoration of a monument in the event of its destruction during the war. Among others, Skeiron is working with the National Institute of Polish Cultural Heritage Abroad “Polonika”.
SKEIRON (MeetUAprofessionals)
New Youtube channel
Meanwhile, the Guayaquil Convention Bureau from Ecuador has published a new promotional video, and the Seoul Convention Bureau has just launched a new YouTube channel in the summer. Among the first videos was coverage of Asia’s largest cryptocurrency and blockchain industry event, Korea Blockchain Week 2022.
Rings of Auckland Convention Bureau
Back in the summer, the Auckland Convention Bureau started a campaign targeting incentive travel organisers. No doubt this has to do with the release of Amazon Studios’ new series Lord of the Rings: the Rings of Power. The first season (like the entire film adaptation of J.R.R Tolkien’s books, directed by Peter Jackson) was filmed in picturesque locations in New Zealand. Unfortunately, Amazon has announced that the second season will no longer be filmed in this part of the world and this is New Zealand’s last chance to use the popularity of the Hobbit story to promote the destination.
All of the initiatives show that the destination not only competes by having the right infrastructure or transport network but also as an authentic destination that gives meeting planners many unique reasons to host events.
