The Asia-Pacific Incentives and Meetings Expo (AIME) has officially launched a new direction, that organisers say will “transform the AIME experience and its engagement with the business events industry”.

Underpinned by a new community strategy, AIME is extending the opportunities for ‘inspiration, education and business’ across the brand.

Karen Bolinger, Chief Executive Officer of Melbourne Convention Bureau said, as the traditional exhibitions model is being challenged, “AIME is redefining its business and evolving from a two-day event to a year-round engagement with its community”.

She said this would be executed across AIME’s three key pillars of ‘Networking, Business and Education’ and deliver increased levels of “expertise, knowledge and exchange of ideas to Exhibitors, Buyers and Visitors – the AIME community”.

“The changes to AIME have been done firmly with our customers in mind,” she said. “It is about our brand remaining relevant and implementing new ways to continually increase the value to our Exhibitors, Buyers and Visitors; to make it easier for people to come together to inspire, connect and most importantly, to do business.

“The value of face to face networking is consistently reinforced by business and industry professionals and the desire to meet is human nature.

“However, due to technological innovations and new digital media the way we now conduct business has shifted to a hybrid of face to face and digital touch-points to connect and converse.”

ALIST Openhouse

AIME’s new brand is also supported by the tagline ‘Where inspiration begins’, to show that the AIME community is a collaboration driven and developed by the industry and a bold new logo designed to work across both traditional and digital media more effectively.

Jacqui Timmins, Exhibition Director at AIME and CIBTM, said the new AIME experience has been executed through a number of changes to the show floor in 2015.

“We have introduced the Community Hub in the centre of the show floor, designed to facilitate the AIME Community connecting and engaging,” she said.

“The central Hub includes roundtable coaching sessions to inspire, ‘silent seminars’ where attendees can listen to influential speakers and, a networking area to provide a unique meeting space to connect in a relaxed, informal setting.

“The entire show floor has also been redesigned for ease of access and an enhanced attendee experience. Specific sections including geographic regions, hotels, venues, and products and services have been allocated to different ‘zones’ so that all attendees are able to easily and quickly find the suppliers they wish to connect with.

“Our vision is to support and bring the business events community together, creating a new experience for Exhibitors, Hosted Buyers and Visitors. Understanding what their needs are prior to, during and after the event are fundamental to the new initiatives this year and how the AIME experience continues to evolve.

“AIME 2015 marks the beginning of a new strategic direction that will ensure we continue to lead the industry and provide added value to the business events community and its business growth.” Timmins said.

AIME is being held this week (24-25 February) at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

James Wilkinson

Editor-In-Chief, Hotel Management