Publications - ExPact - Frequently Asked Questions

The Destination & Travel Foundation has produced the new white paper, Research Guidelines for Meeting and Convention Spending Studies, to assist DMOs in developing direct spending profiles of their meetings and conventions. The guidelines are available free of charge to members and stakeholders, and may be shared with any interested party.

Led by the Foundation Research Review Committee and DMAI's research consultant, Ruth Trojan of Nadler & Associates, the goal was to provide a "roadmap" for DMOs to facilitate the gathering of meeting and convention spending by delegates, exhibiting companies, and event planners.

The research guidelines address three key areas: administrative/operational considerations, research methodology recommendations, and sample questions. Issues including hiring reputable research vendors, gathering 'buy-in' among key stakeholders in the early stages of the research project, competitive bidding, and clearly defining study goals are explored. The guidelines identify and explain different research methodologies, as well as the fundamentals of questionnaire design. Extensive sample questions are provided.

The guidelines represent a shift by DMAI in how it assists DMOs articulate the value of meetings and conventions. After much study and discussion, DMAI decided to discontinue its meeting and convention spending study earlier this year. The methodology used for DMAI's previous studies was no longer feasible to replicate. With the information overload of the Internet, it became increasingly difficult to gain access to delegate and exhibitor information through the event planners. This access played a pivotal role in the studies' methodology.

As part of this evolution, the ExPact calculator has been phased out.

If you have any questions about the new research guidelines, please contact Ruth Trojan, research consultant to DMAI, ruth@nadlerandassociates.com.

Updated November 2009