Entering the ninth year with a face lift

The World of Events welcomes its guests to the refurbished Rhein-Main-Hallen. The conference and fair are now established as sector highlights.

It's the visitors who decide the success or failure of an event. And for years now, they've shown where their loyalties lie. So often ridiculed, the event organised by CC Corporate Communications, Bad Nauheim, and Rhein-Main-Hallen Betriebsgesellschaft, Wiesbaden, is now entering its ninth year. Whereas other marketing exhibitions have been forced to quit or are still looking for ideas to secure attendees, the freshly renovated Wiesbadener Hallen once again opens its doors to the event scene from January 17 to 18, 2007.
The fair is the first port of call for anyone seeking to keep abreast of market developments. The large majority of visitors in 2005 were company representatives (40 %), small and medium-sized businesses were also very much in evidence with 21 %, as well as banks and insurance companies with 24 %. The automotive and pharmaceutical industry (each with nearly 10 %) also made up a large proportion of the total number of visitors. The reason for the interest of companies may lie in the trade fair's structure. Not only will visitors find tools for their corporate event, be it the Formula 1 simulator or the walking-act, Wiesbaden also attracts exhibitors offering a wide range of services, from event locations to incentive programmes.
The Live Forum will once again be an important component and visitor attraction. The two-day programme with artists and musicians offers the audience an ideal opportunity to watch artistes, comedians, compares, magicians and other entertainers in action. Next to variety, networking is another of the event's strong points. Managers and employees of event, advertising and PR agencies are the second largest group of trade visitors with a 26 % share. True to tradition, the WOE Night will once again be presented in Wiesbaden's Kurhaus, this time with around 1,500 guests. Visitors can register in advance at www.worldofevents.de and take advantage of many services. For the first time, all visitors will receive a personalised badge. Those signing up on the Internet are offered the trade fair entrance tickets and tickets for the WOE Night on January 17 at a special rate. There are also service improvements for exhibitors registering via the Internet.
Besides providing all the information necessary for trade visitor registration and a WOE Night ticket shop, the event's Internet portal also provides a personal and exclusive exhibitor area. In this password-protected zone, companies can order and manage guest tickets on-line and register exhibitor passes. With a special scanner, exhibitors can scan in visitor badges quickly and easily providing them with all the data of the visitors to their stands digitally for their own further use.
Next year the Rhein-Main-Hallen will welcome guests through a new attractive main entrance with elegant foyers and a new conference and exhibitor area providing around 1,800 m2 of additional space. Expansion of the foyer area goes hand in hand with the refurbishment of the entire interior of the main foyer's ground floor and upper floor. Upgrading includes a new, modern air conditioning and lighting system, presenting no less than 4,000 m2 of foyer space in a completely new design.Companies currently spend around 14.2 % of their marketing budget on events. However, two-thirds of all decision-makers do not see their brand presentations as unique. But anyone who thinks that an unmistakeable event is simply a question of budget could not be further from the truth. It's the soft factors that are the key to uniqueness. What these soft skills are, and how they should be channelled into the planning and implementation of events will be discussed by marketing experts during the 9th trade conference on the World of Events. Topics include a study on trends in live communication presented by Dagobert Hartmann, Uniplan International. Sébastien Tondeur, President of the European Council 2006/2007 of Meeting Professional International (MPI) will talk about the work of the association as well as its current and new education and training opportunities. "Success by concentrating on the essentials" is the title of another talk by Gerhard Conzelmann from the C&P group. He presents the power of thought, concentration on the moment, the targeted use of emotional power and conscious experiencing of reality as factors of success. Shao Lin monks from China will demonstrate the effectiveness of concentration on the essentials. Many other practical examples from a wide range of sectors will provide exhaustive insight into the opportunities of skilfully applied live communication. It is this combination that makes World of Events the industry's must-go-to fixture and a key reason why so many exhibitors have remained loyal for so many years. Röder, Zelt- und Veranstaltungsservice, a committed and enthusiastic contributor to World of Events since 1998 will also be there again next year. Yet again, the company is out to demonstrate its team strengths.
Not only the FKM data analysis shows the positive response of recent years and that the exhibitor's expectations have been met. "Contacts are intensifying and our customers use the opportunity to communicate on numerous subjects to do with the services we offer" reports Jens Brüggemann, Röder, speaking about the product show whose next instalment will be called formation blanche. The partnership concept of this trade fair appearance reflects the multi-faceted requirements of events: Everything from the interior life of a tent, Röder, the sound and lighting concept, Winkler Veranstaltungstechink, and individual light elements, AMP-Brandstifter, to a feel-good atmosphere with air conditioning, Fath Wärmekurier, can be given a suitable ambience with the right interior design, Orgatech, and vegetation, Bleker. Assembling a comprehensive package that includes all those aspects while also integrating new elements is the task to which the team has an ongoing commitment. Receptive to new ideas and always on the lookout for new forms, they welcome a new partner at WOE 2007: Zendome. Thus the exhibitors are continuing a tradition which began in 2003 with the presentation of the Mercedes DTM tent and in ensuing years with the Time Tunnel, Ice Channel and Fire Tunnel. At the coming appearance, too, a new approach in the guise of Mopsis will be showcased, which continues the tradition of seeking out new forms. "We're looking forward to the creative light concepts that will be experienced on entering the octagon and the Zendome", declares Ronald Huber, Winkler Veranstaltungstechnik. Let's see what the visitors have to say.
And the organisers are happy to report that the fair remains the exhibitors and visitors unchallenged favourite. More than 300 companies had made permanent bookings. "We want to break all previous records." The optimism of Beate Nöhre, CC Corporate Communications, and Thomas Krohne, Rhein-Main-Hallen operating company, is justified; the run on the last remaining square meters is in full swing. The exhibition seeks to give outline of the trends and tools of the sector. More than 7000 visitors are expected again next year.
www.worldofevents.de

m+a report Nr.8 / 2006 vom 08.12.2006
m+a report vom 8. Dezember 2006