Research has been telling us that meetings business is rebounding in a big way, but there’s nothing like seeing it for yourself. In addition to record-setting attendance, here are some other up-and-coming trends we spotted as we dashed around the show floor at IMEX America 2024.

Meeting Professionals International’s latest Q3 Meetings Outlook reported that more than 75% were projecting a continuation of the increasing attendance trend, but there’s nothing like seeing that research play out in real life — which is something all who attended this year’s IMEX America in Las Vegas got to experience first-hand.

That people were beyond eager to meet, brainstorm, learn and do business face to face was obvious as more than 15,500 meeting and event professionals, hospitality partners and other suppliers and vendors packed the Mandalay Bay Convention Center for IMEX America 2024. The 13th edition of the show, which was held Oct. 8-10, broke its attendance record for the second year in a row.

“The sheer number of attendees and meetings at IMEX America … is further evidence of how our sector continues to prosper and power ahead,” said Carina Bauer, IMEX CEO.

Here are six of the up-and-coming ideas we noted during our trendspotting mission on the IMEX show floor, in the educational sessions, at ancillary events and in conversations over the course of the show:

• Still figuring out how best to use AI for event planning. While AI has moved from a “what the heck is this?” of last year to “here’s how we’re finding it useful,” it still is, and likely will continue to be, a hot topic for the foreseeable future. As Valerie Smith from Comcast commented, “AI is what everyone’s talking about — I’d like to know how best to integrate this into our events — whether it’s registration, speakers or communications.” One of the top AI sessions MeetingMentor attended was led by Mitch Mitchem, CEO of HIVE Interactive and an experienced technology expert, who outlined several tasks where AI is already playing a significant role including script writing, sales emails and marketing campaigns. Mitchem’s demo of how to use beautiful.ai to streamline the process of making slide decks was, as one attendee told us, “Worth the entire cost of going to this show for the time and effort this is going to save me.”

• Going beyond tokenism to creating true, lasting impacts on the local community — and meeting participants. Many meetings and events now include some form of corporate social responsibility (CSR) or otherwise find ways to involve the local community, but sometimes it can feel a bit pro forma instead of meaningful. In one session, Michael Drake from Destination Vancouver talked about Canada’s efforts to work with its indigenous communities, explaining how event planners can make a meaningful impact rather than resorting to tokenism. “In Canada, we’re in the process of truth and reconciliation with our Indigenous First Nations communities. The first step for event planners is to engage them. You can invite them to welcome your event, but I encourage going further—include them as speakers or provide travel passes or free tickets. Another step is to source as much as possible from the community, such as local foods or products that offer social benefits to the community, women, or youth.”

• Designing programs — especially incentives — that appeal to Gen Z. Gen Z may make up a miniscule proportion of the workforce — and meeting attendance — today, but in just a few years, they’ll be up to a third of the workforce. So if you’re not working to find ways to engage this latest cohort into your meetings, it’s time to start.

This is especially true when it comes to incentive programs, where the traditional golf/ski/beach travel incentive may not be as appealing to this generation as it has been for their parents and grandparents. During a SITE/MPI panel, Gen Z incentive participants want experiences that are more immersive, personalized and authentic — including those local impact activities.

• Putting wellness, inclusivity and sustainability front and center. Another trend that’s only going to grow as the proportion of the younger generation grows in the workforce is an increased focus on health, wellness, inclusivity and sustainability — all of which are core to the belief systems of Gen Z. This means shifting from events as just a way to network and do business to harnessing the power of events to help people flourish. As Megan Henshall from Google Xi, said in her education session Designing for Human Flourishing held at the Google Xi CoLaboratory, “One of our mottos is to leave people better than we found them. There are issues we can all experience – from loneliness to health and well-being – that can be helped by gathering together.” This includes everything from providing high-quality mocktails for non-alcohol imbibers, to accommodating food allergies and preferences, to incorporating time and space for physical movement, to providing accommodations for people with the full range of visible and invisible disabilities, including the neurodivergent. And with a recent survey finding that 78% of global event planners saying their organizations are planning to set net-zero goals by the end of 2024, sustainability is no longer a nice-to-have, but an essential. Just before this year’s show floor opened, IMEX America’s organizer, the IMEX Group, released a sustainability report for its 2023 show that showed that, for the fifth time in a row, IMEX America was classified as a zero-waste event (93% of event waste was diverted from a landfill into compost, material recycling, and donation channels​).

• Finding cool, unique venues that embody the local community’s spirit. While unique venues from museums to boutique restaurants to aquariums were everywhere on the show floor, one new addition we couldn’t help but notice was the eight Major League Baseball ballparks. Reps from Boston’s Fenway Park, Chicago’s Wrigley Field, and several other famed ballparks created buzz with a cool AR activation and a press conference to showcase how their venues can be used for everything from sales kickoffs to VIP dinners and private concerts. We have been to several of these sport-venue non-sporting events, including one for a small group held recently at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, and they definitely amp up the excitement.

• Event marketing may (finally) be getting some attention. According to The state of in-person B2B conferences report, 80.4% of organizers identify in-person events as their organization’s most impactful marketing channel — and 80% of respondents to Freeman’s 2024 Attendee Intent and Behavior survey say that in-person events are the most trusted marketing channel. But do events get 80% of the marketing budget? Hardly. There was definitely more of a presence for event marketing at IMEX America this year than has been the case previously, something that many were commenting on along the lines of, “It’s about time we got event marketers to come to our events!” IMEX, in partnership with InVision, LVCVA and Allegiant Stadium Private Events, did its part to draw them in by creating a boutique Brand Experience Summit held at Allegiant Stadium. The idea behind the Summit was to bring together senior level marketeers to understand how they can better use events as a key marketing channel to drive brand loyalty, trust, engagement and business outcomes.