Event Management

Examine the changes in the event industry throughout the years. Where do you think the industry is heading to?

An event is an action of occasional communication, temporary and purposive gathering of people. There are temporary in nature, often display of ritual and they are unique occurrence. Events are destined to mark people with a specific goal. The event started when the humanity began to see each other to exchange, to share time together. With the new generation and the industrial edge, new needs of communication brings a new era for the event industry. To let a company knows, to sell a product, firms started to organize their own festivities which created a new market: the event market. And through the centuries, the event sector allows to companies but even privates to create relation and to link for instance the enterprise and its customers. This fact points out the following issue: Is the event industry can be determine as the communication of tomorrow and how this sector is going to develop? This question is very interesting; indeed, event industry is growing throughout the years, and few studies are done to show where this huge industry is heading to. To try to explain this phenomenon, we are going to explicate the evolution and change in the event industry and in the second part I will expose my point of view about the future of the event industry.

Event industry knew a deep change through the years. This sector has never stop to increase and prosper, bringing new needed in organizations and more and more important tools. People have always celebrated. Celebration was a great benefit since its beginning. Indeed, the goal of event was and still is to share culture, bond people, keep a common like between people, enjoy time or generate money. And so, each age generated its own festivities. However, it is during the eighteen centuries that the event sector really emerged, the first international trade show was the Great Exhibition in 1861 in the United Kingdom with 6 million visitors, and excellent promotional tool for the British industry. The event improved the brand image of Britain. This event leaded to the development of exhibition facilities in the late 19TH century and a new aspect of the event industry. Indeed, because of the new industrial era, firms needed to communicate. For instance, Ford launched its Ford T. This era puts in relief new fairs and trade show. One of the major sectors which used event during that time was the automobile sector.

Furthermore, at the same time, the 18th and 19th centuries developed a new branch of event industry: it was the birth of the sporting event. We can quote the Wimbledon championship in the 1877. One of the most important in some parts, sporting event nowadays are some events that we can call mega-event such as the Olympic Games; and above all this kind of event succeeded in bringing the world together. One huge impact in the event industry was the beginning of bank holiday which has made lawful. Citizens started to take time for leisure. The impact was notable. During those free times, events were created to entertained people. And in return, people appreciate a moment of pleasure specially created to diverted inhabitants. The event industry started to spread itself. After sporting event it is the turn of cultural event to take place. Such event leaded to a new aspect of event field, such as created public celebration, displayed the image and culture of a Nation and even to improve the touristic part of a destination. A real market of events appears. In the early 20TH century, the sector is in expansion, the government start to recognize the sector, infrastructure are built to support the industry, events play a role in economic sector, more and more festivities are created. And around the world, communities improve their way to celebrate their cultural believes, for instance, Chinese event, Latin Americas carnivals. The event sector starts to be a professional sector, increasing spectacular productions requiring new sets of skills, experience, creativity, financing, planning and leadership and spread in the international stage. From informal affairs to business celebrations event sector is more and more supervised. Finally, the globalization process generates a new perspective and deep changes to event sector. Technology, travel, Internet and media, innovations reconfigured and have a strong impact on the sector. The sector adapts and improves its capabilities to play in the international stage and develop a worldwide market. Moreover, event agencies and commercial strategies are enhanced. The market is so developed that it is becoming not only a privilege tool for the firms but also for the privates. New demands, needs and challenges appear today which is why this sector is always in perpetual evolution. The event industry knows a spectacular growth throughout the years. This phenomenon is due to the evolution of our society (industrial and technology era for example). Indeed, to respond to a new demand, a new market for selling product, new strategies and competition; event sector is developing itself and is expanding new fields of interventions.

However, the real issue is where the event industry is heading to? As we said before, the idea for the event sector is to continue to grow up and to exploit new field, new sectors. For the well being of the sector, event has to develop and create new perspectives, to touch in current area, and to promote new idea, ideological, political, sustainable etc At first, we know that an increasing numbers of agencies are opening. This is one point that demonstrate that the event industry is prospering. Through experiences, the agencies understand that they need to respect some criteria to improve in the best way; in the field of the creativity, the well-doing, the reactivity for instance. So through the years, agencies highlight new structures which put in place a market of competition. In a second part, the firms will always need of the event because event is a tool of communication for them. Event such as, convention, congress, colloquium is the best way for enterprise to let their product knows (apple uses it for instance). It is what we call the event of communication which emerged during the 1980s.It is a current branch more and more useful for the firms and put in place by some specialists, and specific agencies in the goal of selling a brands or an image, to create a desire, to catch the attention and to surprise. In terms of figures, according to the ANAE (association agencies of event of communication) the event market expects a growth of this business on around 13%. This means that this sector is not really in crisis. The event communication field in the firms strategy is present and indispensable.

To reach these objectives, new technologies play a primordial role in event area. Event will evolve with technology in the future and will use new tools. Indeed, social network, video conference, video projection is going to be seen frequently in the different types of events The sector tries to link the event management with a futurist vision in order to stay competitive, to prosper in a period of perpetual change, and above all to be the most innovative as possible. The great part is that the participants take part actively in the event they are not anymore spectators because they can implicate, give their ideas Because of the climatic problem, event sector invades the stage of ecological area. In fact, because it is a huge issue, lots of meetings and events are created to gather people in this specific issue. Moreover, the sector decides to be more sustainable, and to work in this way. We think that the event sector is improving is way of acting. Indeed, the launch of product are more and more spectacular, the advertisement is necessary but not enough. Nowadays, the idea is to go on the street and to keep in touch with the customers. It is a way to touch the target differently. These new types of event are efficient, people trust that they are the

first one to know about the last product sold. Moreover, this kind of new event is cheaper, and Medias like that, so the information is guaranteed to be diffused. In another part, the event sector deals with a new aspect, the social aspect. Events made lead to the loyalty of the customers. More and more firms use events to create this feeling to their customers and also to their employees, by proposing travels, parties. The industry helps firms to become closer; it is a new role for this sector. We can quote the Apple strategy which offers some holidays to its employees. The event sector needs to be more spectacular and made with quality because of a new demands and the competition. The sector has to bank on innovation and creativity. The idea is rebuilt and improved their strategy every time, to create new and different types of events. If we give the reference of The Olympic games, each time the different countries intends to be more and more impressive, and to suggest new offers to attract more people. Moreover, the international stage is becoming a business area for the event sector. A foreign market which ask new skill, for instance have competencies in languages. This market allows creating huge events, to work with partnerships. Indeed, the globalization leads to produce new events, event for huge public in order to gather different types of people. The decisions making, the organization will be very affected by a good management skill. Furthermore, the place attributed for private and particular event is rising. These types of customers are more and more important and as exigent as the professional. It is an evolution in the event market. The objective is to optimize the event and to carry an original succeed which need to be different from others. Events such as Anniversaries, weddings, receptions, private nights are looking for innovations in terms of personal image and venue. Finally, it is important to talk about the economic crisis and the impact on this sector. Indeed, the event sector before 2009 knew a great evolution, however face to the crisis we can say that the event area knows a slowing down of its business. But the impact on this sector is not too strong. Because as we said before, event agencies is still creating, there is a huge demand and lot of fields need events in order to display information. After this observation, we think that the event sector is going to improve.

To conclude, through this study, we have seen the major features of the event market, as long as the evolutions of the sectors, the actors, and the different fields which exist since years. We understand that the market, which we can qualified as recent, is improving, and it offers a lot of possibilities, decision, and strategies for the different agencies.

We can say that event sector is an area of innovation, creativity and development with a great growth that is still exist nowadays even despite of the crisis. We can say that the firms play a primordial role in this sector. Finally, in the event sector you have to be polyvalent and always following the new technology to propose the best quality. And keep in mind that the idea of an event is to create emotion and dream.