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• Meetings are far more than a collection of speeches or talking points. They are an opportunity for people of similar interests to come together and share their stories about how they are coping as well as what they are doing to increase business.
  - John Baldoni, Leadership at Work
• "Those who get hammered — the reservation clerks, maids, baggage handlers, waiters and tour guides — are the little guys and gals whom Obama's stimulus package is supposed to put back to work."
  - Kathy E. Read, Investor's Business Daily
• "With an estimated 200,000 travel jobs lost in 2008 and the loss of an additional 247,000 travel-related jobs expected in 2009, it is critical that every effort be made to protect beneficial meetings and events." - Roger Dow, president & CEO, U.S. Travel Association
• "[Travel for business meetings and events] drives the whole hospitality industry in America, and that industry isn't fat cats; it's waiters and dishwashers, maids and cooks, event staff and hotel clerks – blue-collar workers who belong to unions." - Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times columnist

Meetings and Events:

1. For every dollar invested in business travel, companies realize $12.50 in incremental revenue.
2. More than half of business travelers stated that 5-20% of their company’s new customers were the result of trade show participation.
3. According to business travelers across all industries, 25% of existing customers and 28% of revenue could be lost to competitors if customers were not met in-person.

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