BRITISH CONFERENCE VENUES SURVEY 2007 Scotland

Transcription

1 BRITISH CONFERENCE VENUES SURVEY 2007 Scotland July 2007 Prepared for VisitScotland by: TEAM Tourism Consulting Administration: 4 Thorburn Rd, Edinburgh EH13 0BQ info@team-tourism.com Phone:

2 Table of Contents Executive Summary...i 1 Introduction Background Survey methodology Definitions Sample characteristics Weighting and data accuracy Conferences in Volume of conferences in Meeting rooms and utilisation Duration of conferences Timing of conferences Delegate rates Levels of residential business Conference organisation Type of conference Conference size Origin of conference business The value of conference activity Business Performance Comparisons with Prospects for Appendix 1: Volume and impact calculation...i Appendix 2: Sub-regional analysis...i Appendix 3: Questionnaire... iii

3 Executive Summary Introduction The British Conference Venues Survey (BCVS) is a national survey that is conducted annually. This report provides an analysis of venues in Scotland. The sample at the national level was 314 valid responses and 49 valid responses for Scotland. Conferences in Scotland 2006 the key facts Number of conferences There were an estimated 105,000 conferences and meetings in Scotland in an average 318 conferences per venue. This was slightly below the reported UK average of 392 conferences per venue. This generated an estimated expenditure of 783m for conference venues. Length of Conferences The average conference duration was 1.7 days, although most conferences (56%) lasted a day or less. This varied from 1.5 days for non- residential conferences to 2.2 days for residential conferences. This was broadly the same as the national pattern. The most common type of conference was a non-residential day conference (52% of Scotland s reported conferences). Other common conferences included two day non-residential conferences (13% of all reported conferences) and two day residential conferences (14%). Peak Months Peak periods for conferences in Scotland were late summer / autumn (particularly September, and November), and early spring (particularly March and April). The quietest months were peak summer (July and August) and winter (December and January). This was similar to the national picture. Delegate Rates The average daily delegate rate achieved by venues for conferences was 38 (inc VAT). This was similar to the national average of 35. The average 24 hour / residential rate was 145 (inc VAT) this was higher than the national average of 121. i

4 Residential Conferences The majority (62%) of conferences did not involve an overnight stay. Over a third involved an overnight stay the majority of this was at the venue (25%). However, a reasonable proportion (13%) involved an overnight stay in the wider destination this was higher than the national average (8%). Conference Booking Approximately 27% of conferences were booked by a professional conference organiser or venue finding agency. Organisations holding conferences About half (53%) of conferences were generated by corporate / for profit organisations. Government and the public sector accounted for a third (33%). The remainder (15%) were organised by associations. Conference Size The average conference size in Scotland was 61 delegates this was slightly higher than the national average (53 delegates). Most conferences (58%) had 50 or less delegates. Origin of conference business Venues highlighted that, on average, the majority (67%) of their conference business was from Scotland. A quarter (25%) was from the rest of the UK, and 8% from overseas (compared to an average of 4% for the UK). Business performance 75% of venues highlighted that business was up in 2006 over A similar proportion anticipated that business would be up in ii

5 1 Introduction 1.1 Background The British Conference Venues Survey is a national survey that has been carried out annually since It seeks to: Measure the key characteristics of the UK conference market from a venue perspective; Provide the best possible estimates for volume and value aspects of the market. The following report provides an overview of the results of the 2007 survey from both a national and Scotland perspective. The report is divided into three sections. This section focuses on the objectives, methodology and sample of the survey. The second section provides an overview of the characteristics of the conference market from the venues perspective. Section three looks at business performance in comparison to the previous year, and prospects for Appendix 1 provides a summary of data relating to the UK, Scotland and four subregional conference areas (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and the rest of Scotland). 1.2 Survey methodology BCVS is a self completion survey and, in 2007, the survey questionnaire was available in two forms a web version and a Microsoft Word version that could be completed and returned by post, fax or . In 2007, BACD contacted all conference desks / bureaus in the UK and asked them to try to recruit their venue members to the survey. In addition, BACD and other industry organisations (e.g. MIA, M&IT magazine, Venuemasters, and Conference Centres of Excellence) also assisted in the promotion of the survey to their members and databases. 1

6 Section 1.4 provides an overview of the sample size and characteristics. 1.3 Definitions A number of definitions are used in BCVS. A conference venue is defined as a: Paid-for facility (i.e. rented, not a company s in-house meeting rooms) containing; At least 3 meeting rooms for hire with; A minimum capacity of 50 theatre-style in its largest room. Conference venues can be sub-divided into six categories. These are defined as follows: Purpose-built conference centre specifically designed to host conferences and with a capacity of over 500 delegates theatre style. Usually with a large auditorium and supporting break-out seminar and meeting rooms. Conference / training centre venues devoted to the conference or training market comprising specifically designed learning spaces with three or more lecture rooms, with no room having a capacity of more than 500 delegates. They host residential and non-residential conferences. Multi-purpose venue usually local authority-owned and used for many types of event besides conferences. At least one large community auditorium or hall e.g. community centres, leisure centres, town halls. Hotel. University or other educational institution. Unusual venue museums, castles, sporting venues, visitor attractions etc. A conference within this survey is defined as an out of office meeting of at least four hours duration involving a minimum of 8 people. Other terms used within the survey include: Corporate / for profit organisation company meetings and training courses, annual general meetings, board meetings, sales meetings, product launches. Associations - trade and professional associations and institutions, societies (professional and voluntary), trade unions, and educational and academic groups. 2

7 Government and public sector - events held by government departments and agencies, local authorities, the National Health Service, and similar public bodies. Notes to the reader: All percentages are rounded to the nearest whole figure sometimes figures may not therefore add up to exactly 100%; An asterix (*) indicates a value of less than 0.5%; A dash (-) indicates no value. 1.4 Sample characteristics At a national level, there were 314 valid responses to the survey these contained responses to the majority of questions 1. For Scotland, there were 49 valid responses. The following table outlines the unweighted sample characteristics: % respondents UK Scotland Sample = 314 Sample = 49 Venue Type Hotel Unusual venue University or other educational institution 8 2 Multi-purpose venue 8 4 Conference / training centre 9 8 Purpose built conference centre 4 8 Seating capacity * * Largest space / room in theatre style. 1 NB this excludes venues where the number of conferences exceeds These have been excluded from this, and previous BCVS surveys, to avoid their extreme impact on the results. 3

8 The following table summarises the geographic distribution of venues in the Scotland sample. Location No. of venues Aberdeen 8 Edinburgh 13 Glasgow 15 Rest of Scotland Weighting and data accuracy The national and Scotland data in this report has been weighted on the basis of venue type to more accurately reflect the sample universe. The local data has not been weighted by venue type. This is because the relatively small sample size at this level may result in giving undue bias to the importance of one or two venues (resulting in an unrealistic skew of the results). Data has also been weighted by the number of conferences held at a venue in order to ensure that data reflects conference averages and not venue averages. The following table outlines the estimate of the UK and Scottish sample universes (that has been used as the basis for weighting). % % UK Scotland Venue Type % Sample % Sample Universe* sample Universe * sample Hotel Unusual venue University or other educational institution Multi-purpose venue Conference / training centre Purpose built conference centre * Source: BACD database of Conference Venues. 4

9 For Scotland, the sample broadly reflects the type of venues but there are some discrepancies. Unusual venues, purpose built conference centres, and conference / training centres are over-represented in the sample. Hotels, multi-purpose venues and academic institutions are under-represented. Defining the exact nature and scale of the conference venue universe is problematic. There are a number of databases that could be used to define it (e.g. the BACD database, the CAT publications database, and the Conference Blue & Green database). It is felt that the BACD database is probably the most representative for all venue types and it has been used within this analysis as the basis for identifying the overall proportions of the sample universe. However, it is not necessarily comprehensive in terms of the number of venues (the BACD database indicates approximately 2600 venues in the UK) and for the purposes of this report an overall estimate of 3500 venues in the UK has been made for the number of conference venues in the UK. For Scotland, the BACD database highlights approximately 250 venues applying the same ratios as the national data gives us an overall estimate of 330 venues in Scotland. Some caution should be exercised in the interpretation and use of data in this survey. All surveys are subject to some degree of error and BCVS is no exception. There are three potential sources of error that should be noted. 1. An unrepresentative sample. As the previous table highlights, the sample does not mirror exactly the supply of conference venues in Scotland. Similarly, there are some potential biases geographically with areas of Scotland overrepresented and others under-represented. 2. Sample size. The overall sample size is relatively small and inevitably therefore subject to potential margins of error. 3. Respondent estimation. Some of the questions may not necessarily be in a format that responds to a venue s recording methods or may relate to data that a venue does not routinely collect. As such, in some cases venues will have made estimates in response to particular questions the accuracy of such estimates may vary. 5

10 2 Conferences in Volume of conferences in 2006 In 2006, venues in Scotland reported an average of 318 conferences. This was slightly below the reported UK average of 392 conferences per venue. The following table highlights the number of conferences within Scotland and UK venues. UK Scotland Average annual conferences per venue Estimated no. of conference venues * Total conferences 1.37m 105k * Estimate see section 1.5 above. Based on the estimated number of conference venues, there were approximately 105,000 conferences and meetings in Scotland in The following table shows the performance of venues in terms of numbers of conferences held in No. of conferences in 2006 Conference performance UK venues % Scotland venues % 1 to to to The most common number of conferences achieved by venues was 100 or less in Scotland, 40% of venues achieved this. This was slightly higher than the national average (where 32% of venues hosted 100 or less conferences). A small, but significant, proportion of venues (13%) were hosting more than 1000 conferences a year this was the same as the national average. 6

11 2.2 Meeting rooms and utilisation The following table highlights the number of meeting rooms of venues in the sample. No. of meeting rooms UK venues Scotland venues % % Less than Av. no. of rooms Av. no. of rooms (excluding universities) Av. no. of conferences per room in Av. no. of conferences per room in (excluding universities) In terms of numbers of meeting rooms per venue the Scotland sample was broadly similar to the UK sample, and the majority of venues in the survey (82%) had 10 or less meeting rooms. The average number of rooms for Scottish venues (excluding universities etc, which typically have large numbers of rooms) was 7.2. In terms of average number of conferences per meeting room, venues in Scotland hosted approximately 46 (if universities are excluded from the analysis) the same as the national average. 7

12 2.3 Duration of conferences The following table summarises the duration of conferences in Scotland. Duration of conferences in Scotland % non residential conferences % residential conferences % all conferences 4 hours to a day days days days or more days Average duration 1.5 days 2.2 days 1.7 days The majority of all conferences (56%) lasted 4 hours to a day and about a quarter (27%) lasted two days. The overall average length of a conference was 1.7 days broadly the same as the national average (1.6 days). Non-residential conferences (i.e. a conference that did not involve an overnight stay at the venue, although in some instances could involve a stay in the destination) lasted on average 1.5 days with around 69% lasting a day. This is broadly the same as the rest of the UK (1.4 days). Residential conferences (i.e. a conference that involved a stay at the venue) lasted on average 2.2 days again the same as the national average. The most common length for residential conferences was two days (57%). The most common type of conference in Scotland was a non-residential day conference they represented 52% of all conferences. Other common conferences were two-day non-residential conferences (13% of all conferences), and two-day residential conferences (14% of all conferences). 8

13 2.4 Timing of conferences The following graph highlights the timing of conferences for the UK and Scotland. Month of conferences % conferences Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec UK conferences Scotland conferences The line across the chart illustrates the theoretical average per month - 8.3%. As the chart identifies, timings of conferences in Scotland are very similar to UK averages. There is a peak in the shoulder months, particularly in late summer and autumn (i.e. September, and November had 12% and 11% of conferences respectively) and also in early spring (with March and April accounting for a 11% and 10% of conferences respectively). Quieter conference months were during the summer period (with only 6% of conferences in July and August) and winter period (particularly December and January with 6% and 5% of conferences respectively). 9

14 2.5 Delegate rates Average delegate rates (including VAT) achieved by venues during 2006 are highlighted in the following table. Delegate Rates UK venues % Scotland venues % Day basis Less than Over Average daily achieved conference rate (inc VAT) 1 24 hour/residential basis Less than Average 24 hour / residential achieved conference rate (inc VAT) 1 * Overall average daily and 24 hour achieved rates are weighted by number of conferences and type of venue they therefore relate to an overall achieved rate for conferences. The frequencies by rate in this table are simply weighted by venue type they therefore represent the average rates achieved by venues. Scottish venues tended to be in the range for achieved day / non residential delegate rates, and 101 to 150 for achieved 24 hour / residential rates. This reflects national patterns and achieved rates were on a par with the UK as a whole for non- 10

15 residential conferences ( 38 for Scotland compared to 35 for the UK) and higher for residential conferences ( 145 for Scotland compared to 121 for the UK). 2.6 Levels of residential business The following table highlights the levels of different types of conference business to venues in the UK and Scotland during UK % of conferences Scotland % of conferences Overnight at destination 8 13 Overnight at venue Not overnight About three fifths (62%) of conference business in Scotland did not involve an overnight stay this was the same as the UK as a whole. Over a third of conference business involved an overnight stay the majority of this was at the venue but a significant proportion (13%) of conference business involved an overnight stay in the wider destination this was higher than the national average (8%). 2.7 Conference organisation Approximately 27% of reported conferences in Scotland were booked by a professional conference organiser or a venue finding agency. This is on a par with the national average (29%). 11

16 2.8 Type of conference The following table summarises the ratio of all conferences organised, and conference revenue received by venues from different types of organisation (see section 1.3 for appropriate definitions). All conferences Type of conference UK venues % Scotland venues % Corporate / for profit organisations Associations Government and public sector Conference Revenue Corporate / for profit organisations Associations Government and public sector Approximately half of conferences (53%) in Scotland were organised by the corporate / for profit sector. The next most significant group was government and the public sector (33%). Associations accounted for 15% of the market. This pattern was broadly the same as the UK. The breakdown of conference revenue was broadly the same as conference types the corporate generated slightly more revenue than its volume would suggest. 12

17 2.9 Conference size The following table summarises conference sizes. UK conferences % Scotland conferences % 8 20 delegates delegates delegates delegates delegates delegates * * delegates * * Over 2000 delegates * * Average conference size 53 delegates 61 delegates * = less than 0.5% Most conferences (58%) were of 50 delegates or less the majority of these were for less than 20 delegates. Approximately 11% of conferences had more than 200 delegates. The average conference size in Scotland was 61 delegates, which was slightly higher than the national average (53 delegates). 13

18 2.10 Origin of conference business The following chart summarises where venues indicated their conference business was coming from. Origin of conference business Rest of UK 25% Overseas 8% Scotland 67% Venues highlighted that, on average, the majority (69%) of their conference business was coming from the Scotland. About a quarter (25%) was from the rest of the UK, and 8% from overseas. This is a similar pattern to the UK, albeit the proportion of overseas conference business was higher in Scotland (8%) than the UK as a whole (4%). 14

19 2.11 The value of conference activity The volume and direct impact of conference activity to venues in Scotland is shown in the following table. Given the caveats outlined in section 1.5 these figures are probably an overestimation and should be treated with a degree of caution. An overview of the calculation behind this data can be found in Appendix 1. Non residential events Residential events All events No of conferences ('000) No. of delegates ('000) No of event days ('000) Impact ( m) The table highlights that the overall value of direct conference trade to venues in Scotland in 2006 was an estimated 783 million 2. 2 It should be noted that this is based on the achieved delegate rates provided by venues it will exclude expenditure in the wider destination on, e.g. transport, entertainment, eating out, and accommodation (where delegates are not staying at the venue), which for some types of conference (e.g. association) can be significant. However, this needs to be balanced against certain assumptions in the calculation (e.g. all residential delegates stay for the entire length of an event), which is likely to lead to an over-estimate of the impact of business related events. 15

20 3 Business Performance 3.1 Comparisons with 2005 Venues were asked how their 2006 business performance compared with 2005 the results are illustrated in the following graph: Comparisons with business levels in 2005 Down 6% The same 19% Up 75% Three quarters of Scotland conference venues highlighted that their 2006 business performance was up on 2005 only a small proportion (6%) felt it was down. Nationally, 63% of venues felt that business was up in

21 3.2 Prospects for 2007 Venues were also asked what their expectations for 2007 were these are summarised below. Expectations for 2007 Down 2% About the same 22% Up 76% Venues in Scotland were, on the whole, optimistic about prospects for 2007 three quarters felt that business would be up in 2007 and only 2% felt it would be done. Nationally, 63% of venues felt business would be up in

22 Appendix 1: Volume and impact calculation i

23 Estimates of the volume and impact of events to Scotland are based on the calculation in the following diagram. NB some figures are rounded in this diagram. x % non residential = 75% Volume of events 105k x % residential = 25% No of day / non residential events 78.6k No of residential events 26.3k No of event days 118k x average length =1.5 No of event days 57k x average length =2.2 x av. no. of delegates = 61* x av. no. of delegates =61* No of delegate days 7205k No of delegate days 3514k Value 274million x av. achieved non resident rate = 38 Value 509 million x av. achieved resident rate = 145 Value of business related events 783 million * Note it is assumed, in the absence of other data, that the average size of residential and non-residential conferences is the same. ii

24 Appendix 2: Sub-regional analysis i

25 UK Scotland Aberdeen Edinburgh Glasgow Rest of Scotland Sample Average number of conferences Residential /non residential conferences % at destination % at venue % day Delegate rates (inc VAT) Average day rates (inc VAT) Average staying rates (inc VAT) Duration Average duration all conferences Average duration non residential Average duration residential Type of conference % Corporate / for profit organisations % Association % Govt/public sector Average size (all conferences) Delegate origin Regional / Scotland 69 UK 27 Overseas 4 Note: UK and Scotland data has been weighted. Local data has not i

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27 Appendix 3: Questionnaire iii

28 British Conference Venues Survey 2007 STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL Section 1: Your details Please complete the following details about yourself and your venue. Simply type in the grey boxes they will expand as you write. Name: Job title: Venue Name: Address: Phone: It is useful for our survey sponsors to know who is involved in this survey. However, any answers you provide to this survey will not be disclosed to any third parties, including the survey sponsors. If you do not want them to know your venue is in the survey, please tick the following box Section 2: Your venue Q1 Which of the following best describes your venue? Please tick one box only Hotel. Unusual venue museums, theatres, castles, sporting venues etc. University or other educational institution. Multi-purpose venue usually local authority-owned and used for many types of event besides conferences. At least one large community auditorium or hall e.g. community centres, leisure centres, town halls. Conference / training centre venues devoted to the conference or training market comprising specifically designed learning spaces with three or more lecture rooms, with no room having a capacity of more than 500 delegates. They host residential and non-residential conferences. Purpose-built conference centre specifically designed to host conferences and with a capacity of over 500 delegates theatre style. Usually with a large auditorium and supporting break-out seminar and meeting rooms e.g. large international conference centres in cities. iv

29 Q3 What is the maximum conference capacity at your venue? i.e theatre style largest single area/room Delegates Q4 How many meeting rooms does your venue provide? Rooms Section 3: Conferences in 2006 Q5 In total, how many conferences were held at your venue in 2006? A conference is an out of office meeting of at least four hours duration involving a minimum of 8 people. Conferences Q6 What proportion of conferences took place at your venue during each month of 2006? January February March April May June July August September October November December Total 100% Q7 What was the average daily delegate rate (inc. VAT) achieved by your venue during a) on a day/8-hour/non-residential basis? b) on a 24-hour/residential basis (if applicable)? v

30 Q8 What proportion of your conference business would you estimate....stayed overnight in your destination (but not at your venue)? stayed overnight at your venue (if applicable)? did not stay overnight? Total 100% Q9a Please give an estimated breakdown of the duration of non-residential conferences at your venue? Non- Residential conferences 4 hrs to a day Two days Three days Four days Five or more days Total 100% Q9b Please give an estimated breakdown of the duration of residential conferences at your venue? Residential conferences 4 hrs to a day Two days Three days Four days Five or more days Total 100% Q10 What proportion of conferences taking place at your venue were booked through a professional conference organiser or venue finding agency? If not sure, please provide an estimate % vi

31 Q11 During 2006, what proportion of : A...all conferences held at your venue would you describe as being organised by the following types of organisation? B...conference revenue received by your venue was generated by the following types of organisation? A. All conferences % Corporate / for profit organisations? e.g. company meetings and training courses, annual general meetings, board meetings, sales meetings, product launches B. Conference revenue % Associations? e.g. trade and professional associations and institutions, societies (professional and voluntary), trade unions, and educational and academic groups. Government, and public sector? e.g events held by government departments and agencies, local authorities, the National Health Service, charities and similar public bodies. Total 100% 100% Q12 Approximately what proportion of your conferences in 2006 were the following sizes? 8 20 delegates delegates delegates delegates delegates delegates delegates Over 2000 delegates Total 100% Q13 Approximately what proportion of your conference business would you estimate was from.. the region / country where your venue is located (i.e Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, or an English region e.g. London, the South West, West Midlands, North West etc)? the rest of the UK? overseas? Total 100% vii

32 Section 4: Business performance Q14 Compared to 2005, was business in Please tick one box only Up? About the same? Down? Q15 Compared to 2006, do you expect business in 2007 to be. Please tick one box only About the same? Up? Down? viii