Planning an incentive trip without researching your attendees’ preferences and understanding their ideal destinations is like navigating a maze blindfolded. While you might eventually reach your destination, the journey will be filled with challenges and missed opportunities.
If you want to truly motivate your top performers and create lasting impact, effective research should be where you begin your planning. But where do you look? One of the best resources for insights into the desires and preferences of today’s workforce is the Incentive Research Foundation (IRF). Their Attendee Preferences Report for 2024 provides invaluable data to elevate your next incentive program.
Quick Links:
- Why Attendee Preferences Should Drive Your Incentive Travel Program Design
- Five Attendee Preferences for Incentive Travel Program Design
- What Is a Destination Meeting?
- Incorporating Attendee Preferences Into Future Incentive Trips
- Plan The Perfect Event with Bishop-McCann
Why Attendee Preferences Should Drive Your Incentive Travel Program Design
Much like previous IRF reports, the new data indicates incentive travel is still highly desired. Of the 400 survey respondents from the 2024 Attendee Preferences for Incentive Travel Report, 91% “describe a group incentive travel experience as ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ motivating.” However, understanding attendees’ preferences and implementing those into your program’s design is critical for effective ROI.
One factor event planners need to take into account is the shift in incentive travel programs that target younger employees. The study notes that those under the age of 43 find incentive trips extremely motivating. However, these same people place a higher level of importance on sustainability and other CSR initiatives. Therefore, including CSR and sustainability efforts in the event suddenly becomes as important as selecting the perfect destination if your attendees are in this generational group. The bottom line is that you need to know your winners' preferences if you want your incentive program to resonate with your target audience.
But what if your travel group includes dozens or even hundreds of guests of varying ages (which is most often the case)? Then planners need to get creative and include activities that cater to a wide variety of people while still maintaining a personal touch. Survey your audience before you plan in order to cater to as many different preferences as possible. This kind of personalization allows you to incorporate activities based on attendee choices, which will cultivate memorable travel opportunities.
While the destination of incentive programs remains a top priority for planners, the overall design has a great impact as well. Program design includes everything from food and beverage options to planned excursions, networking activities, sponsorships, entertainment, and more. These features, when executed with preferences in mind, make a positive impact on attendee experiences.
With the implementation of activities and events that resonate with attendees comes a boost in motivation and connections among guests. When this occurs, your team will work more effectively once they return to work, resulting in higher efficiency for organizations. Essentially, when guests are engaged with event activities, the connections and relationships fostered during those experiences translate to their work outside of the event as well. Not only do guests enjoy themselves and experience a new destination during incentive trips, but these programs also bring greater benefits to the organizations as well.
Five Attendee Preferences for Incentive Travel Program Design
As outlined by the 2024 IRF Attendee Preferences Report, many preferences remain stable when compared to previous year’s reports, but there are a few that stand out. Below we outline some of the key takeaways from this year’s report.
Destinations
From international travel to luxurious stays and unique experiences, there’s much to consider when designing an incentive trip. As mentioned previously, 91% of respondents in the IRF survey report that group incentive travel is very or even extremely motivating. With such high importance placed on this aspect of incentive travel, we can’t brush over the significance of destination selection.
When selecting a destination, it’s important to understand what is most appealing to your specific attendees. Then you’ll need to decide on domestic or international travel. The report notes that the top North American destinations reflect the same locations as previous studies, including Hawaii, Las Vegas, Florida and the Caribbean. For international destinations, attendees are fond of countries in Western Europe and Central America.
Leisure & Luxury
Among the top incentive program priorities is free time. According to 84.5% of respondents, opportunity for downtime is one of the most important aspects of the trip. This falls in line with data from previous years and continues to be a key feature in an attendee’s rating of the experience in a positive manner.
In addition, 80% of respondents reported that luxury accommodations are a top driver behind positive incentive program experiences. This type of accommodation allows participants the opportunity to experience the amenities of the venue during those downtime moments, resulting in a more relaxing and fulfilling travel experience.
Experiences & Features
While attendees prefer some free time to relax or explore on their own, they also want to have unique experiences. There are various elements that you can include in an incentive program design, but the 2024 Attendee Preferences Report shares some insights about what is truly appealing for participants, and this can help narrow down your decisions. For instance, having the opportunity to experience a unique culture is tied to a positive experience, which follows the data gathered in previous years.
This allows planners to get creative and try to uncover hidden gems throughout the destination that will contribute to memorable experiences. So since peer recognition is lower on the list of priorities according to this report, it may be wise to allocate more time to experiences outside of the hotel or resort.
Trip Extensions
One of the biggest decisions you need to make when planning incentive travel is the trip’s length. Will it be a weekend trip? Would the program be better executed over an entire week? How much time is needed to achieve your goals? Here is where we see a trade-off between what attendees want and how incentive programs are being designed.
In the 2023 IRF report, 65% of respondents extended their trip either before or after the official event. While this number dropped in 2024 to 57%, this is still a high rate of trip extensions. Obviously, many guests want to stay to enjoy these destinations on their own time (this is especially true for trips outside of North America), so coordinating with the venue to get a discounted rate for extensions is another benefit that results in higher guest satisfaction.
Cruising
Incentive trips that involve cruising are trending upward in popularity. According to the 2024 IRF study, there was a 36% increase in cruise line quotes from 2022 to 2023, and that data continues to increase as of 2024.
This trend is likely related to the fact that safety and comfort on cruises have shown marked improvement in the perceptions of respondents. Additionally, cruises allow guests to experience multiple destinations in one trip. The other driving factor is cruise lines’ amenities, which rival those offered by all-inclusive resorts. This type of amenity package appealed to 79% of respondents when offered in any incentive program design.
What Is a Destination Meeting?
Destination meetings can be any type of corporate event (from stakeholder meetings to trade shows, conventions, and more) that is moved from traditional convention centers to exciting destinations or non-traditional venues. While event planners often seek out convention halls or hotels that offer spaces to stage meetings, destination events are located in interesting and exciting venues that offer unique opportunities for guests. These programs aren’t necessarily bound by four walls and often give tons of opportunities for theme creation!
The chance to travel for these types of programs adds excitement for your attendees while allowing your event to stand out in ways that a traditional setting might not afford. You’ll receive opportunities for engagement on social media while off-site activities (often a key aspect of destination meetings) will offer informal interactions among your attendees to encourage organic networking. In short, an effectively designed destination meeting will foster loyalty, boost morale, and ensure maximum engagement for your attendees.
Incorporating Attendee Preferences Into Future Incentive Trips
The 2024 IRF Attendee Preferences Report provides a brief look into what’s ahead for incentive travel programs. Specifically, as concern over health and safety seems to have stabilized among attendees, we should now see preferences shift even more toward international destinations rather than destinations that are closer to home.
By leveraging the insights in the IRF report and making sure you understand your target audience’s preferences, you’ll be equipped to design an incentive travel program that seamlessly blends relaxation, team building, and personalization, ensuring you achieve your program goals for all future incentive travel.
Plan The Perfect Event with Bishop-McCann
It isn’t easy to cater to the preferences of every single guest attending a destination event. But it is possible to find a balance. The findings from the 2024 Attendee Preferences Report are a great place to begin your research, but if you find yourself in need of some extra guidance, you can always count on Bishop-McCann.
Not only do we have the experience and expertise to help design your next incentive travel program, but as event and travel specialists, we’re here to ensure flawless end-to-end execution. We’ll be with you and your team the entire way, ensuring you’ve created an immersive experience custom-designed around your attendee’s unique preferences.
If you’re ready to plan your next unforgettable destination meeting or incentive travel program, get in touch with the Bishop-McCann team today, and let’s start planning!
