Information event in the Congress Innsbruck: Innsbruck as a congress location should pick up speed again through synergies of the “Meeting Experts”.
On October 12, 2022, the “Meeting Experts”, an association of renowned universities and congress organizers, invited to an information evening at the Congress Innsbruck. The aim of the event was to introduce this institution to potential organizers of events. The aim was to create awareness among the guests from science and research for the variety of offers and support services of the “Meeting Experts”.
INNSBRUCK. “We are very happy that we can meet again in person. The congress industry thrives on personal exchange. That also implies the basic character of this meeting today,” said Hausherr Director Christian Mayerhofer, Managing Director of Congress Messe Innsbruck, representatives of the local universities and educational institutions at the first get-together of the “Meeting Experts”.
This is an association of Congress Messe Innsbruck (CMI), Leopold Franzens Universität Innsbruck (LFUI), Innsbruck Medical University (MUI) and the Innsbruck Convention Bureau. The group was launched in 2020. The aim of the interest group is to identify possible synergies between science and congress service providers and to pool their expertise. “We have been working together for many years,” says Christine Keth, head of the Innsbruck Convention Bureau. “So we want to network even more closely with the ‘Meeting Experts’ in order to consider together how we can advance the Innsbruck region as a congress location. With the connection to the universities, we can bridge the gap to academia,” Keth continued.
Congresses are important for the hotel industry
Mario Gerber, chairman of Innsbruck Tourismus, showed the value of the tourism segment MICE (meetings, incentives, congresses, events) for the region: “Conventions bring enormous added value for the region. Not only congress halls, but also hotels and restaurants as well as regional trade and leisure facilities benefit from this. Even before the pandemic, the Innsbruck region was an established congress location that needs to be further promoted.” The numbers also speak for themselves: “The average expenses of a congress guest before Corona include travel, expenses for accommodation, meals, shopping and leisure activities 1,400 euros. Of this alone, around 475 euros were spent on accommodation. This is the result of a WIFO value-added study commissioned by us in 2019,” explains Gerber. An internal convention bureau is responsible for advertising Innsbruck as a congress location. Innsbruck Tourismus is also significantly involved in the support group for congresses: “Conference guests are an important target group for the region. We also want to give financial support to those who bring important congresses to the region. There is a separate, budgetary congress funding for this, which organizers can apply for,” explains Gerber.
Bundling of expertise with a comprehensive range of services
The “Meeting Experts” are characterized by a wide range of offers. Through the association of universities and congress service providers, organizers should be optimally looked after. “In addition to research and teaching, a university lives from exchange, which takes place primarily at congresses and events. Employees either travel to congresses or hold them themselves,” explains Mag. Uwe Steger, head of the LFUI’s public relations office. This results in different requests that need to be organized. “Most inquiries come to us regarding complexity and logistics. The rooms in the university buildings are primarily designed for teaching, but not for holding large, international congresses,” explains Simona Gurtner, Event Management Specialist, Team PR & Media at the MUI. Klaus Schmidhofer, Sales, knows this topic – and Marketing Manager CMI, to follow: “The Congress Messe Innsbruck can look back on decades of international experience as a congress location and service provider. In addition to allegedly for congresses, each format up to 3,300 participants, we offer the latest technology and comprehensive advice and also have an in-house full-service PCO (Professional Congress Organizer).”
Scientific study on Innsbruck as a congress location
Mag. Dr. Sven Jeschke, Advisor to the Dean’s Office at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at the LFUI. He recently held one of the largest congresses in Innsbruck, the ECPR General Conference, with around 1,700 participants. “The motivation for holding this event was to show that it is also possible in a smaller city like Innsbruck to hold a congress of this extension as a ‘Green Meeting’. Because the region as a coherent overall package is characterized as a successful congress location. “The charm of the surroundings, the good price-performance ratio and the excellent infrastructure characterize Innsbruck,” says Professor Dr. Gustav Fraedrich, former head of the University Clinic for Vascular Surgery, MUI, who has already organized four international congresses in the region in the past. “The reason that we founded this expert group is that we want to pass on our experience to others,” says Fraedrich.