Until now meeting suppliers joining the International Congress
and Convention Association (ICCA) have done so primarily in order to access data
on international associations and their meetings.
Networking and education have been other draws, of course, but
generating sales leads through ICCA’s extensive Business Intelligence (BI)
database was basically why people parted with their cash.
Now ICCA has gone a step further by adding governmental
meetings to its database, which it describes as a ‘previously untapped – and potentially
huge sector’ for its members.
Traditionally, ICCA has focused on association meetings only
as the association community brings revenue, commerce and change into cities,
regions, and countries across the world.
Now the association said it was bringing ‘new and exciting
business opportunities directly to our members’, which made ‘the ICCA value
proposition stronger than ever’.
ICCA CEO Senthil
Gopinath said: “This is the exciting advancement our members have been waiting
for. Governmental meetings occur at local, regional, and international levels
all across the world.
“It has vast potential. We believe government meeting needs
- allayed to our members’ expertise - creates a win-win situation for all
stakeholders. I look forward to ICCA GM driving both business success and the
establishment of conducive long-term working partnerships.”
Governmental meetings have been categorised as high net
worth.
The new ICCA 'GM' database will be progressive at the outset as we test
and populate the database with our members’ data. After testing, it is
projected to grow sizably and occupy a significant part of ICCA's ever evolving
portfolio.
Written By
James Lancaster
AMI editor James
Lancaster is a familiar face in the meetings industry and international
association community. Since joining AMI in 2010, he has gained a reputation
for asking difficult questions and getting lost in convention centres. Proofer, podcaster, and panellist - in his spare time, James likes to walk,
read, listen to music, and drink beer.
