Not so long ago, the heads of sales and marketing of a company always met at the beginning of the year in the same way: plenary session, workshops, maybe a small in-house exhibition and in the evening a gala with awards ceremony and party band. Easy to reach destination, efficient meeting place. Everything nice “angular, practical, good”.

In terms of content, the main focus was on conveying information. The workshops were also small plenary events rather than interactive creativity centers.

Common experiences are remembered

After almost two years of Corona, the tide has turned. Businesses have realized that face-to-face interaction is an irreplaceable commodity. The complexity of face-to-face communication cannot be achieved through virtual events. The value of face-to-face encounters has increased again. The time together is precious and should therefore be used more intensively and interactively. For this reason, business meetings become places of experience. The shared experience offers the chance of an emotional and positive cognitive anchoring. The mere exchange of information can therefore take place elsewhere and, for example, also virtually, more efficiently and more easily.

Workshops only in the morning

This realization is changing the design of business events. Instead of all-day plenary and workshop situations, the classic business parts are increasingly only being carried out in the mornings. In the afternoon, overarching topics are solved interactively, creatively and with the involvement of the destination. The joint experience leads to a knowledge experience that transports content much more sustainably than conventional plenary lectures.

The demand for quality is increasing

The new creativity documents the new requirements. Destinations, hotels, conference venues and supporting programs have to meet much higher demands today than in the old conference world.

The aim of companies is to generate valuable and unforgettable themed experiences together with their employees and customers instead of just exchanging information and data.