You surely haven’t missed Part 1 of our Event Trends, but, if you have, you can check them out HERE. Now we’re back for Part 2, to see what else is on the horizon as we explore sustainability, integrated approaches and well-being.

Shining the spotlight on sustainability in the events industry

The focus, year on year, sharpens on sustainability and 2023 will be no different. In fact, according to M&IT Magazine, this year, more than ever, the way the events industry is talking about sustainability has shifted. No longer are environmentally conscious decisions simply a nice-to-have, they are a must. In fact, they are expected by the audience and a lack of clarity surrounding environmental practices could result in lower attendance and long-lasting negative associations.

Events have a vast roster of elements they can use to ‘greenify’ their events. Small touches like offering recycling bins (a given!) and going paperless. These, paired with larger, more instrumental decisions such as using local companies and suppliers, reducing and combining deliveries and transportation, creating elements out of recycled materials, using sustainable lighting options, offering vegan and vegetarian catering and many, many more things. These are now at the forefront of minds. Rightly so.

During our event activation at Cannes, we made a point of only using local suppliers to cut down on sending crew and kits from overseas and whilst working in Santa Clara late last year, we ensured that all catering equipment and materials were made from recyclable materials. It’s small touches that go a long way.

Event organisers have a duty to set a good example, for their peers and for their audience and actually, should shout about it to share good practices amongst the industry. This is just one of many reasons why we are strong advocates of the hybrid model and the positive impact it can have sustainability-wise. How much are sustainable practices factored into your event planning?

If you want to hear more on our thoughts about sustainability, our Business Director, Nikki has been looking into how we can all become more eco-friendly. Keep an eye out for her insightful piece, coming next week.

An integrated approach to project delivery

It’s, unfortunately, far too common for organisations to compartmentalise their various departments. This effect impacts the learnings that can be shared between various channels, for instance, let’s take events and marketing.

To us, it’s a no-brainer that these two work in tandem. It’s why here at Lively we are all one team, feeding into each other whether it be our project team, innovation team, content team or marketing team. We feel that viewing marketing as a siloed form of events, content and advertising is both binary and boring. All must go hand in hand, for example, the data collected, and the experience of the guests at any given event can inform the marketing approach for the following months. At the end of the day, all departments share the same common goal, to better the business, connections and sales.

Moreover, and as Forbes suggests, an integrated and holistic approach across multi departments and channels, shows the company is singing from the same hymn. In turn, this shows a strong, united company that clients want to create a relationship with. Making use of the various channels available and optimising the involvement of various departments is anticipated to be the only way forward for 2023.

Looking after ourselves

For our last event trend, we look inwards. We all know how tough the past few years have been, but the one thing Covid has positively impacted is the fresh outlook on work-life balance and the benefits that working from home has brought our industry and others. We are now much more in tune, and more open in terms of mental health and opening the conversation. Within the Events Industry, there’s an expectation that the focus on mental wellness will “impact the events industry in unprecedented ways in the next few years”.

According to Campaign, there will be an enhanced focus on the well-being of those who work in the industry, taking a closer look at the effects of burnout and stress. The key though is not just to talk about it, but to implement techniques to alleviate these ever-growing problems. With our job falling within one of the top 5 most stressful jobs, it’s not surprising that we need to work hard to set these boundaries to make sure we protect our teams.

Here at Lively, flexible working is championed - taking away busy commutes and the need to be at a certain place at a certain time. We know we work in an ‘always on’ industry, and so offering a little flexibility is key, in turn, creating a happier work environment and happier clients.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on these Event Trends or if you feel we’ve missed anything. Get in touch via our LinkedIn - we love to chat!