Last year in May, when in-person events started showing signs of life again (after being nonexistent with the pandemic), our team set out to check the pulse of our event community with a 2021 Back to In-Person Events Survey — leaving us with really helpful insights as we evaluated how event professionals were feeling about a comeback. This year, we performed a 2022 In-Person Events Survey, which received over 220 responses, and here’s what the results revealed…
Events are back, and now we have a plan.
The main return we got back from the survey showed that 93% of event planners are once again planning a live or hybrid event this year—a 17% increase over 2021. Another 3% are sticking with virtual events only (a significant change from 18% in 2021), while the remainder is still waiting to start their event planning back up.
What is even more interesting is the number of event teams who now have a plan in place for their events. Almost 94% of planners say they have an in-person event safety plan that adheres to local and industry compliance standards—a huge jump from only 74% who had a plan in place in 2021. Driving those plans is attendee comfort, followed by local requirements, the organization’s requirements, and the venue requirements.
While this is evidence that the industry has made changes that are likely here to stay, it also shows that we are ready and willing to do whatever it takes to have those in-person connections once again!
Safety is still top-of-mind, but we have other concerns, too.
In 2021, the primary concern among event planners was by far attendee safety, as noted by a whopping 77% of respondents. Trailing behind that concern was travel restrictions, budget and then other considerations like attendee comfort and turnout.
In 2022, we still see that the primary concern is attendee safety (at 58%), but has given a little way to other concerns like budget, travel restrictions and local restrictions (each around 13%), with a 6% margin on other concerns—which include case surges and dealing with new COVID-19 variants.
To address attendee safety, event planners are turning to a variety of solutions, especially as it concerns event entry procedures. The 2022 survey found:
- 50.35% will require COVID-19 vaccinations;
- 30.07% will provide health screening questions;
- 28.67% will require a Code of Conduct agreement and signature;
- 27.27% will require COVID-19 vaccination boosters;
- 13.29% will conduct a temperature check;
- 11.19% are requiring an on-site COVID-19 negative rapid test; and
- Meanwhile, a quarter of the respondents (26.57%) will not require any of the above.
Additionally, when it comes to enforcement and validation of the safety protocols, responses are split. While 35% will not require vaccinations or negative tests as part of the entry validation process, around 22% will require a test result or vaccination card to be shown at the door, with 13% using the CLEAR Health pass, and another 10% will rely on some other technology product to provide those results. A minimal 6% will require email proof of the results, instead.
Finally, when it comes to assigning or employing a safety officer (such as a Pandemic Compliance Advisor) on-site, only 13% of planners say they will definitely have one. Forty-six percent don’t plan on having one at all, and the remainder of respondents (40%) aren’t sure, but realize that the responsibility will ultimately fall to them to fill or delegate.
Safety protocols may still change, but they are here to stay
While we all know that the COVID-19 pandemic has potentially changed the event landscape forever, how we all proceed forward remains a moving target. As event planners start making their way into 2023 events, many of them expect to see continual changes in requirements and restrictions, but are ready to adapt. More than half (55.24%) plan to change in whatever ways the local requirements force them to change, while 19% realize that these safety protocols are now just another aspect of any future events. And while 4% think that their current protocols will get stricter as time goes by, significantly more—around 22%—think the opposite will happen.
When it comes to money—costs are up, but budgets aren’t
Unfortunately, those aforementioned budgetary concerns aren’t just worrisome—they are real challenges that event planners are dealing with. In 2022, with inflation on the rise and supplies in high demand, budget costs are up, with half of the planners surveyed planning on additional cost increases (per attendee) to cover additional safety measures like sanitizers, food packaging, masks and more. Here’s how it breaks out:
- Around 34% are planning on an additional five to ten percent increase per attendee (up from 32% in 2021);
- Six percent are working with an 11 to 15% increase (down from 13% last year);
- Eight percent are planning on 16 to 20% increase (up from 5% last year); and
- Two percent are bracing for a 20% increase per attendee (down from 4% in 2021).
However, it’s important to realize that other event expenses are also up. Outside of food and venue, the top costs for 2022 survey respondents were technology, staffing, safety equipment, and other expenses (speakers, entertainment, advertising).
Unfortunately, budgets haven’t necessarily kept up with the demands of the economy and new safety protocols. Out of all the survey respondents, only 31% noted that their events budget had increased since COVID, while all others stayed the same (42%), saw a decrease (20%), or were put on hold or just doing more with less (7%).
While these survey responses tell us a lot about how the industry is moving back toward in-person, the results are encouraging in that—in spite of the economy, travel restrictions, insecurity, and new, constantly changing safety measures— the event industry is ready to return.
If you’re planning to go back to in-person events this year and are curious about how event technology can help and why you need it, download this infosheet or click here for more details.