Edinburgh Delegates Set to Reap Rewards

Edinburgh Delegates Set to Reap Rewards
New rewards website opens the best of Edinburgh to visiting delegates

Scotland’s Capital is building on the success of its innovative Edinburgh Rewards scheme for delegates, with the launch of a new mobile-responsive website, making accessing city-wide VIP offers even easier for Edinburgh’s business tourism visitors.

Project managed by Marketing Edinburgh, Edinburgh Rewards curates around 100 exclusive delegate offers at any one time from across a diverse range of high-quality restaurants, bars, retailers and attractions. Along with a new interactive map and search facility, thanks to the addition of a mobile- geolocation service, delegates can now simply explore edinburghrewards.com on their mobile phone to discover nearby venues and offers.

Not available to the public, only delegates with a copy of the Edinburgh Rewards Passport will be able to redeem the special deals featured on the website, from the likes of Harvey Nichols, Galvin Brasserie de Luxe, Badger & Co, Jamie’s Italian, The Stand Comedy Club and Laing the Jeweller.

Distribution of 25,000 copies of the latest quarterly edition of the Edinburgh Rewards Passport is now underway, being issued to hundreds of meeting organisers for inclusion in their up and coming delegate registration packs. The Edinburgh International Conference Centre will also house dedicated displays of the passports on site for attending delegates to pick up their copy.

Some of first beneficiaries of Edinburgh Rewards new special offers and enhanced geolocation services include the 3,000 delegates attending the 2017 World Veterinary Poultry Association Congress and 1,500 delegates from the European Society for Immunodeficiencies.

Hillary Bett, Head of Commercial and Membership, Marketing Edinburgh said: “Since launching three years ago, the Edinburgh Rewards Programme has grown from strength to strength, now widely recognised as a key city-wide benefit by event organisers planning their future meetings in Edinburgh.”

“It is incredibly popular with delegates too, who not only appreciate the wide variety of VIP offers, but take reassurance that the Edinburgh venues and shops featured in Edinburgh Rewards are of an extremely high-quality.”

Marketing Edinburgh members have also been quick to praise the success of Edinburgh Rewards Programme, which gives businesses not traditionally associated with business tourism access to this influential market and a new customer base.

Paul Walker, founder and designer of Walker Slater Tailors said:
“It has been a pleasure introducing and welcoming conference delegates and visitors to our Edinburgh stores and exciting to meet people from many parts of the country and further afield. The Edinburgh Rewards delegate programme has proved beneficiary to the business here in Edinburgh and has resulted in later online purchases.”

Edinburgh is the UK’s most popular destination outside London for international meetings and 27th in the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) world city rankings. In 2016 Convention Edinburgh, the business tourism arm or Marketing Edinburgh, and its partners won 134 future event bids to host more than 48,000 delegates and securing £74.4M of economic benefit for the city region.

For further information visit: www.edinburghrewards.com Twitter: @delegaterewards
For further information on Convention Edinburgh and its services at www.conventionedinburgh.com @conventions

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#EdinburghRewards #MarketingEdinburgh #CityMarketing #VisitScotland #MICEnews #MICEmedia #MICEpress #DestinationMarketing

BESTCITIES UNVEIL AMBITIOUS PLANS FOR 2017 TOKYO GLOBAL FORUM

BESTCITIES UNVEIL AMBITIOUS PLANS FOR 2017 TOKYO GLOBAL FORUM

BestCities Global Alliance is set to champion inclusivity and multi-culturalism within the business tourism industry in 2017 and beyond, following the announcement Building Global Connections Across Cultures will be the core theme underlying this year’s BestCities Global Forum, taking place in Tokyo 4-7 December 2017.

Building on the 100% delegate success ratings in Dubai 2016, the second BestCities Global Forum will be hosted in partnership with the Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau (TCVB). The impressive programme of education, insight and networking, is already shaping up to be this year’s must-attend event for senior international association meeting planners, looking to increase the positive impact of their meetings.

The Global Forum offers an intimate, yet stimulating learning environment for international association event organisers, to gain a deeper understanding, not only of ways to collaborate more effectively, but how to build professional relationships across cultures and develop effective leadership skills in a global context.

With over 25 years of experience, Sean Blair, owner of ProMeet will facilitate the diverse Forum programme, which includes thought-provoking education sessions, engaging practical workshops, relevant case studies and interactive breakouts challenges, designed to unlock the collective knowledge within the room. Influential speakers will include “accidental executive” and former CEO of Tourism Vancouver Rick Antonson and global leadership and cultural intelligence expert, Miriam van der Horst, owner of Learning 360.

While the majority of the sessions take place in the luxurious Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo, nestled within a vast 19th Century Japanese Garden, host TCVB is also planning a rich and diverse programme to immerse participants in Japan’s heritage and culture, while revealing powerful insights into the city and its institutions. With preparations quickly progressing towards 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, Prof. Hiroo Ichikawa Executive Director of The Mori Memorial Foundation, will also be discussing the strengths and opportunities of Tokyo in the next decade.

Delegates will also have the opportunity to establish relationships with peers and grow global networks, with events such as the Ambassador Dinner, bringing delegates together with influential local ambassadors and key contacts.

A perfect example of collaboration across cultures, the Global Forum also allows delegates to gain an in-depth knowledge of 12 top class meeting destinations under one roof, with City Café meetings and social networking with all 12 of BestCities’ partners: Berlin, Bogotá, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dubai, Edinburgh, Houston, Madrid, Melbourne, Singapore, Tokyo and Vancouver.

BestCities Board Chair, Jonas Wilstrup from Wonderful Copenhagen said:
“Building global connections across cultures is at the very heart of BestCities ethos and long-term success. We are 12 partners that recognise the collective strength of working together, adding value not only for our individual cities, but our clients too. This year’s Global Forum will be addressing both the challenges and opportunities when dealing with international stakeholders, providing informed practical advice and peer-to-peer learning in a way, that will genuinely help and support senior association executives to take their future meetings to the next level.”

Kazuko Toda, Director from Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau said:
“Tokyo is delighted to host the BestCities Global Forum in Tokyo this December. Through hosting the Forum, we would like our clients to find out what Tokyo has to offer as a meetings destination, and not only a tourism destination. Also, through the learnings of the Forum, we hope to motivate and give confidence to clients who have not had the opportunity to hold their event in Tokyo or any of the new BestCities destinations to consider us for their next meeting. “

The inaugural BestCities Global Forum in Dubai, December 2016, was celebrated as an overwhelming success, with 100% of delegates surveyed reporting the Forum fulfilled their main objectives for attending and would recommend it to their international association meeting planners.

Speaking about the outcomes of the 2016 Global Forum in Dubai, Andry Vleeming, Chairman of World Congress on Low Back and Pelvic Girdle Pain said:

“I came with an open mind and was rewarded with four days of networking with talented colleagues sharing interests and expertise.  It has helped change the way I think about our future conferences – the need to move into the future more quickly, which is more critical today than it was in the past.”

Registration for the BestCities Global Forum Tokyo is now open. Free to attend, with round-trip flights, accommodation and meals for all attending qualified international association executives covered by BestCities.

For more information on BestCities and its upcoming events including the BestCities Global Forum in Tokyo (4-7 December 2017) visit http://www.bestcities.net  @BestCitiesGA

 

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#BestCities #Tokyo #MICEnews #MICEIndustry #BestCitiesGlobalForum

MADRID ACCEPTED AS THE NEXT OFFICIAL PARTNER OF LEADING GLOBAL ALLIANCE

MADRID ACCEPTED AS THE NEXT OFFICIAL PARTNER OF LEADING GLOBAL ALLIANCE
BestCities welcomes the leading convention bureau on board

Madrid Convention Bureau (MCB) was today (16 MAY) officially confirmed as the twelfth partner of BestCities Global Alliance. The new signing will bring a truly dynamic international congress city and convention bureau to the alliance that now holds 12 members.

With more than three decades of experience, Madrid has played host in the last years to some of the world’s leading events including the World Petroleum Congress, the World Air Traffic Management Congress and The Congress of the International Dental Federation. With more than 14,000 meetings and events per year serving to more than 1 million delegates, MCB is already paving the way for global standards in the sector.

Adding value to MCB’s offering and shaping its future growth, BestCities will work with MCB to support future innovations and refine its legacy development, such as creating impactful city events for its future association meetings.

As the first BestCities destination within the Mediterranean, MCB will help the alliance establish stronger ties and a more pronounced presence within the area.  Very much in line with BestCities practice, MCB is committed to constantly evolving and reviewing its standards and undergoes an annual audit associated with ‘Q de Calidad Turistica’ – a quality certification for tourism services in Spain. Since 2012 MCB has passed the audit with flying colours, cementing its dedication to continually improving standards in its workings.

Madrid has been committed to improving its sustainability with various programmes aimed to target this issue including City Hospitality Desks which help to control the wastage of unused city brochures through a dedicated delegates desk at conventions. This has grown massively with 11 meetings serving over 18,000 delegates supported this way in 2016. Ambassador programmes are also a key investment for the MCB with its own platform that identifies individuals within areas including non-for profit, NGO’s and universities that have helped secure meetings in Madrid.

The BestCities partnership will support the MCB in acquiring knowledge in legacy development and position Madrid as innovative leaders in this field, alongside the other BestCities’ partners: Berlin, Bogotá, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dubai, Edinburgh, Houston, Melbourne, Singapore, Tokyo and Vancouver.

The MCB is the first destination to go through BestCities’ revised quality management system (QMS). With admission into the Alliance a guarantee to clients that the vital commitments to excellence such as venue capacity, international accessibility and infrastructure framework are a given, the new QMS further extends BestCities offering beyond the key convention elements a city must possess to host world class events. With a focus on advancing the purpose of meetings through vital areas including sustainability, accessibility and legacy development, it adds a further dimension and unique strength to its partner cities’ offering.

BestCities Board Chair, Jonas Wilstrup from Wonderful Copenhagen commented on the new signing:

“Madrid is a world class destination for conferences and events and we’re ecstatic to be welcoming them onto the BestCities Global Alliance. Madrid’s successful submission truly cements BestCities dedication to setting industry standards which we hope to help build with them over the next few years.

“Our dedication is to providing customers with seamless, worry-free services across a global network of cities. As our twelfth member, Madrid will enable us to continue to build the long-term loyalty by adding value through contributing to the cause of meetings. We’re excited to be able to offer our expertise particularly within this area.”

David Noack, Director of Madrid Convention Bureau said:

“MCB trust that becoming a member of BestCities will enrich our knowledge as a convention bureau by embracing their ethos for commitment to excellence. In short, our aim is to guarantee that each congress held in Madrid will be a unique and successful experience made possible through the close working of our organisations.”

For more information on BestCities and its upcoming events including the BestCities Global Forum in Tokyo (4-7 December 2017) visit www.bestcities.net  @BestCitiesGA

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#BestCities #GlobalForum #MCB #MICEnews #MICEmedia

Business Tourism in the Capital is Soaring

Business Tourism in the Capital is Soaring
Convention Edinburgh unveils recent bid wins
 
Edinburgh, the UK’s leading International meetings destination outside of London, has announced a solid start to 2017 with five new bid wins equating to 3,400 delegates and serving over £7M to the local economy. In conjunction with its members, Convention Edinburgh – the organisation responsible for promoting Edinburgh as a premier conference, events and meeting destination – has released details of the large-scale events that will help the Capital city maintain its world class status.

Recent confirmed wins include the European Group for Organisational Studies Colloquium (EGOS) taking place in July 2019 with 1,200 delegates expected and bringing a total of £4M in economic benefit to the city. In April 2018, the International Research Society for Public Management (IRSPM) will host their 22nd annual conference in Edinburgh in April 2018 bringing £732K to the city with 600 delegates. On a similar scale, Eurocities will host its conference in November 2018 bringing 500 delegates and £977K to the economy.

Currently ranked 35 in the world’s city rankings by International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) and a member of BestCities Global Alliance, Edinburgh offers undisputed standards of excellence for hosting high profile conference and events.

Constantly evolving its facilities to further strengthen its offering, recent developments include the revamp of Edinburgh First’s McEwan Hall, part of the University of Edinburgh, which is undergoing a multi-million-pound renovation to transform the historic venue, due to re-open this summer. £25M is also being invested to revamp the 1935 bandstand in Edinburgh’s West Princes Street Gardens to create a 3,000-seat concert and event venue space with a new pavilion, café and visitor centre that will be completed in December 2019.

Lesley Williams, Head of Business Tourism at Convention Edinburgh said:
“We’re off to a really strong start for 2017 and can only see this strengthening over the remainder of the year. Despite challenges and uncertainties brought about by Brexit, it’s great to see Edinburgh consistently attracting high-profile events and conferences.  The city is truly cementing itself as a global competitor.
“As a convention bureau, Convention Edinburgh recognises the support clients need in the planning of their event from location scouting and building relationships with key people and organisations to creating meaningful events through legacy and sustainability – and we’re there every step of the way. Edinburgh as a destination is a fantastic option for events of all sizes and we’re always working to develop and strengthen our offering.”

Professor John Amis, Conference host of EGOS (2019) and Chair in Strategic Management & Organisation at University of Edinburgh said:
“Edinburgh is a beautiful, historic and connected city that combines its heritage with vibrant, modern facilities and first class service. It presents the European Group for Organizational Studies with a unique opportunity to host a highly professional and memorable event in a stunning setting. The multidisciplinary social science traditions of EGOS are reflected in the dynamic and engaging intellectual climate at University of Edinburgh Business School, and in its relationship with the University’s other world class disciplines, including Informatics, Law, Sociology, Psychology and Public Health.”
Professor Stephen Osborne, Conference host of IRSPM (2018) and Chair of International Public Management at University of Edinburgh said:
“Finding good conference venues for the International Research Society for Public Management annual conference is always a challenging and competitive process, as many institutions bid to host the conference. However, Edinburgh’s combination of outstanding conference facilities, excellent international travel links and host of social and other activities to supplement the conference programme, make it a stand-out choice.”

For further information on Convention Edinburgh and its services at www.conventionedinburgh.com @conventions

BESTCITIES GETS READY TO WELCOME MADRID TO GLOBAL ALLIANCE

BESTCITIES GETS READY TO WELCOME MADRID TO GLOBAL ALLIANCE

BestCities Global Alliance is cementing its reputation as the world’s leading convention tourism destination partnership, with the announcement that Madrid is set to become its twelfth member in 2017.

Revealed today (10 January) at PCMA’s Convening Leaders conference in Austin, Texas, the Spanish capital’s Madrid Convention Bureau (MCB) has been accepted as the newest member of the alliance, which also includes Berlin, Bogotá, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dubai, Edinburgh, Houston, Melbourne, Singapore, Tokyo and Vancouver.

MCB is expected to become a full partner in spring 2017, following a comprehensive internal review to ensure the city surpasses the highest quality commitments required of all BestCities partners.

BestCities Board Chair, Jonas Wilstrup, Convention Director of Wonderful Copenhagen Convention Bureau said: “Madrid is one of most established and vibrant international conference destinations in the world and we are proud to welcome them into our alliance. The combination of the exceptional work by MCB, supported by the city’s premiere meeting venues, modern infrastructure and rich cultural offering, make it the ideal candidate to join the BestCities family.

“Achieving and maintaining a standard of excellence that surpasses our clients’ expectations is at the heart of BestCities offering. Madrid’s preliminary membership not only further strengthens the alliance and its profile in Europe, but will help BestCities build on its ambitions and commitment to help clients create lasting legacies for their organisations and events.”

With Madrid ranked fifth in the world by the ICCA International Congress rankings and voted “2016 Best MICE Destination” at the 2016 IBTA Business Travel Awards, MCB is one of the world’s most experienced and successful convention bureaus.  During the last year, the city hosted 14,283 meetings, welcoming over 1 million delegates.

A popular destination for international association meetings, high profile events coming to Madrid in 2017 include the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology ESMO 2017, the European Congress of Medical Oncology EULAR 2017 and the 54th. European Renal Association and European Dialysis and Transplant Association congress.

David Noack Pérez, Director of Madrid Convention Bureau said: “Madrid is a lively and friendly city where everyone feels at home; at the same time, it offers a safe and comfortable setting where taking time out and doing business are equally enjoyable. Its rich artistic and natural heritage, cutting-edge transport network, quality accommodation, fine cuisine and the passion locals show when enjoying our city’s day and night life make Madrid one of the most attractive cities.

“MCB is confident on the fact that becoming a member of BestCities will not only enrich our knowledge as a CB but also that Madrid can for sure enrich the excellent offer for holding events that BestCities represents. Our aim, in short, is to guarantee that in Madrid, each congress held will be a unique and successful experience and this association will contribute on it.”

MCBs’ preliminary BestCities membership follows in the footsteps of Greater Bogotá Convention Bureau, who became a full BestCities partner in April last year, the first Latin American bureau to join the high profile alliance.

For more information on BestCities and its upcoming events visit www.bestcities.net  @BestCitiesGA

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