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What Will Events Look Like Post-Pandemic?
Guest Contributor – June 11, 2020
Chris Keating, Group President, Restaurant Media and Events at Winsight, shares his perspective on why events are so integral to the foodservice industry, what these gatherings might look like in the future and how virtual events can open the door to exciting opportunities.
Why are events so valuable to the foodservice industry?
All conferences, in every industry, serve some combination of three purposes: education, networking, and—for lack of a better word—shopping.
The need for education has been so important to foodservice as technology, changing menus, and evolution of service types have seen an incredible velocity of change, even pre-COVID. Post-COVID, the need for education and insights will be more important than ever.
In regard to networking, this is especially true of foodservice professionals. Restaurant operators are a notoriously social crowd—think about it, they entered a profession which is about inviting “guests” into your place of business and providing them with food, beverage and a social standing. This is not a business for introverts! So I suspect the need to be with their peers and share ideas and war stories will come back faster for foodservice professionals than it will, for example, for computer programmers or actuaries.
And shopping—suppliers are a big part of operator success. From new menu items to technology solutions to labor savers to distribution to sanitation products—connecting with suppliers and the solutions they have are a critical part of success.
And hey, if you also get to meet and take a picture with famous athlete or a former president or a celebrity chef while you’re there, that’s a bonus!
What are some ways that in-person events will change post-COVID?
In the short term, most importantly, we have to create an environment that makes people feel safe. This means everything from limiting attendance (to allow for social distancing) and contactless registration to possibly taking temperatures and having medical staff on-site.
The easiest way to think about it: everything restaurants (and school dining halls and every other foodservice establishment) are doing right now. Thankfully for us we can lean on restaurant operators and leading suppliers to help us figure that stuff out.
Also in the short term—and probably medium term and possibly long term—is eMeetings (or virtual events, or whatever term ends up winning the nomenclature battle). We’re really excited about this for two reasons:
- It gives us the opportunity to expand our audience. The analogy I’m using is the Super Bowl. Yes, the live event is the big deal for corporate sponsors and parties and VIP guests and the whole experiential element. But the virtual event is the TV broadcast that reaches a much bigger audience.
- Ultimately our business is about connecting buyer and sellers. We’re rolling out models where we can enable virtual meetings (on Zoom or some other platform) where we can make that connection—not unlike how we would introduce two people at one of our conferences.
In short, this radical change in our business might be the accelerant that enables something we’ve always wanted to do in our media and conference business—which is build community.
Why is it important for manufacturers to continue to participate in events?
Think about what’s been taken away from manufacturers since March:
- National sales teams have been grounded
- All live events have been canceled
- Distributors and brokers are off the street
All in-person contact has been eliminated. And even when the lockdown ends, think about how hard it will be to visit clients. Will there be travel budgets—especially for those one-off sales calls? Will clients and prospects allow salespeople in their offices? Will they even work in offices?
That in-person connection, which is so vital, will become increasingly rare. And conferences and events will be the most efficient way for that to happen.
Any closing thoughts?
The foodservice industry has been around for thousands of years—at least since Ancient Rome and probably earlier. Trade fares have been around for hundreds of years—at least since medieval Europe and probably earlier. Neither of them are going anywhere.
Chris Keating
Group President, Restaurant Media and Events
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