inConversation… Melbourne CVB's Julia Swanson on the road to recovery

Voted the world's most liveable city seven years in a row by the Economist Intelligence Unit's Global Liveability Index, Melbourne is a city known for providing a creative, innovative, and safe backdrop for all kinds of business events.

Like many destinations, Melbourne has been impacted by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, but the team at Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB) have worked hard to adapt with new digital and hybrid options, while putting in place strict health and safety procedures to enable the return of live events. We caught up with MCB Chief Executive Julia Swanson to find out more…

What is the current situation in Melbourne with regards to Covid?

Victoria has responded to the ever-changing coronavirus (COVID-19) situation swiftly and effectively. Through the hard work of all Victorians, community transmission was reduced to zero, marking an important milestone in our state’s COVID response. [Some new cases have been reported since this interview was carried out.]

The situation remains dynamic but managing case numbers has led to a phased approach of easing restrictions, helping businesses reopen and allowing all Victorians to reach a COVID Safe Summer.

This effective response means we believe Melbourne will be seen as an attractive destination for business events. Melbourne’s reputation as a leading business event destination is supported by a list of success factors the city is renowned for and safety is amongst them. This will continue to be a number one priority for Victoria and its business events supply chain.

Our governments have the appropriate policies and strict health and safety procedures in place to assist the resumption of operations in the hotel and accommodation sector, venues and events supply chain safely in accordance with the easing of restrictions under a COVIDSafe Summer plan.

Our new COVIDSafe Summer will be in place until at least the end of January, giving Victorians more certainty around the next couple of months - and living as normally as we can while we continue to manage the virus.

What guidelines have been put in place for venues and hotels and how is this being monitored?

The Victorian and Australian Governments have introduced policies and strict workplace safety protocols to assist businesses to operate in an environment that is safe for all participants.

Guidelines are setting based and subject to conditions around attendee numbers, capacity caps or density quotas, and whether the venue is indoors, outdoors, seated or free-standing. There are track and trace requirements for attendees, QR code facilities to aid tracing across sites, with COVID marshals to ensure compliance. Appropriate physical distancing measures and density quotas are also in place.

Our website provides event planners with information on safety protocols and initiatives to assist in planning an event in Melbourne with confidence.

Are business events allowed to take place in Melbourne right now? If so, is it mostly local business? 

Business events can be held in various settings across Victoria, from meeting rooms in hotels, museums, restaurants and cafes, to dedicated conference facilities. Therefore, the restrictions applied to these events depends on the setting in which it takes place which have specific sector guidelines for accommodation, hospitality, attractions and experiences and tourism (tours and transport).

While international borders are still restricted much of this business is domestic. MCB already has a presence in the national business event space, with a strong pipeline of national leads and a dedicated team ready to activate this in line with Victoria’s Events roadmap.

Business events can take place, and Melbourne has an innovative supply chain to support the delivery of hybrid events with domestic face-to-face delegates and virtual elements for international delegates.

What policies and protocols have you put in place specifically around business events?

The Victorian Government’s Public Events Framework provides information to help event organisers to meet their safety obligations and responsibilities during the pandemic and allows for larger gatherings of people at business events.

The first few phases allow for seated events, then progresses to standing and roaming events in the later stages. There are different caps for outdoor and indoor settings; with the total attendees per event limited in each phase.

Business events are classified into three tiers according to their scale, complexity, and associated risk factors. Each tier is subject to conditions such as attendee numbers, capacity caps or density quotas and setting guidelines for example if the venue is indoors, outdoors and whether the event is seated or free-standing.

Event organisers need to register their event and submit documentation based on number of attendees, risk factors and detailed COVIDSafe plans.

Are you getting many enquiries for business events for 2021? 

Absolutely. We are seeing increasing appetite in Asian markets for Corporate, Incentive and Meeting groups. Whilst they may not book now, they are developing their plans and will be quick to take action when borders re-open. 

In the association sector, many events are being organised for 2021 and beyond.  In the short term, we may see traditionally European and US dominated groups have more Australian and New Zealand attendance, with international attendees attending via a hybrid offering. 

MCB is responding by developing digital products and services to cater for the needs of our clients. We have provided alternative options to ensure clients can keep promoting their meetings, particularly as face-to-face engagement opportunities are limited. We’ve also developed virtual site visits, improved digital bid books, delegate boosting kits destination training presentations, which provide updates on our products and offerings to inspire future group travel when the time is right.

The Melbourne Virtual Site which launched last year has really come into its own and proven a terrific asset in assisting event planners with their upcoming event in Melbourne. MCB is strongly focussed on event acquisition, currently we are managing over $532 million worth of bids that have the potential to contribute 258,000 room nights for the hotel and accommodation sector over the coming years, so we feel confident for the long-term outlook for our sector. 

How have you had to adapt the way you communicate with event planners during these challenging times?

We are in daily contact with our clients and providing them tools and information as we work through this challenging situation. 

We have undertaken significant digital transformation of the delivery of products and services to support international bids, professional event organisers and incentive planners plan future travel to Melbourne.

Our Delegate Destination Site houses a wide range of resources to virtually explore the destination, key travel information, exciting itinerary ideas, and special offers from MCB partners to experience the best of Melbourne and regional Victoria. The VR and experiential content available on the platform really sets it apart. Integrating easily into planners existing communication channels with direct booking capability.

We have also developed a series of webinars for event planners specifically designed to connect us with key decision-makers in the corporate and incentive sectors in key markets as they recover, providing updates on our products and offerings to inspire future group travel. 

What trends do you expect to see in the meetings and events market over the 12 months?

Balancing the reality of what needs to be done to ensure attendees’ health and safety with the desire for an inspiring group experience can present challenges, but there are plenty of creative solutions.

Reimagining what itineraries can look like, how venues are used, taking advantage of a host cities natural attributes and of course utilising technology in a COVIDSafe world differentiates a destination for successful incentive travel.

Melbourne is rising to the occasion with an innovative array of new itinerary options for incentive meeting planners and corporations looking to offer a premium and once-in-a-lifetime program to reward, motivate and retain staff, in the comfort of touring within your own ‘group bubble’.

Melbourne’s compact diversity, infrastructure, digital capability, and venue flexibility enables this. 

Designing itineraries to feature more outdoor, experiential programs and an abundance of unique local accommodation partners who can provide significant room blocks, essentially rendering your incentive group the only guest across several floors or total buy-out across the accommodation provider. Accommodation and exclusive venue buyouts are an attractive option, as an incentive group can control the environment and minimise risk for attendees.

Our collaborative ‘Team Melbourne’ philosophy which encapsulates a city-wide approach to generating outcomes for incentive groups and with our close partnerships with industry we are able to address any requirements or needs our client have during their visit.

While international travel is restricted, hybrid events are on the rise and will have a big impact on the business events landscape. Digital solutions have truly come into their own during the pandemic – it was a trend that has been accelerated out of necessity. 

Online events are not a substitute for face-to-face connections, but rather an opportunity for business event organisers to ensure their events are maximising reach and growing their audience. To support this, we have developed a hybrid event guide offering advice and referrals on format and technology selection to defining event requirements, adapting content, agenda development and channels to satisfy attendees, speakers and sponsors.

We work with a wide range of partners, who are experts in the events industry that can assist in creating a captivating event, offering flexible and scalable hybrid and virtual events services with their state-of-the-art live studios, cutting-edge production and a virtual event platforms and  end-to-end hybrid and virtual event management.