Financial pressures on association events are increasing, according to the latest results from a survey jointly carried out by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) and trade show IMEX, with 44 per cent reporting reductions in revenue from sponsors and exhibitions.

The survey, carried out in October, showed an increase of 4 per cent reporting a downturn in revenues from these sources.

Another worrying development is that 48 per cent now predict lower attendances in 2011 than in 2010, compared with only 6 per cent in the previous survey carried out in May. However actual attendance at association meetings continues to be very strong. Of respondees, 30 per cent reported higher attendance than in previous years and 48 per cent reported no change. Of those who reported a fall, 12 per cent reported 'slight' falls and only 9 per cent reported 'significant' reductions. 

ICCA CEO Martin Sirk said: “Whilst there’s no doubt that international association meetings have been the star performance sector over the last year, they’re feeling the pressure of the continued economic turbulence, especially as corporate sponsorship budgets continue to be cut. The picture is extremely mixed, however, and we’re hearing that many regional (European or Asia-Pacific) events are at record levels, whilst some world events are struggling to attract attendances. The lower expectations for 2011 are also a matter for concern, but need to be seen against the backdrop of very strong attendances in 2010.”

Carina Bauer, IMEX Group CEO, added: “These results underline the importance of international association meetings for suppliers from all regions of the world. The Association Day programmes at IMEX and IMEX America in 2011 are going to play an ever more important role in the two shows.”

Download the complete survey results www.iccaworld.com