IBTM World took place in Barcelona on 28-30 November. The Polish team representing the MICE industry was very active during  the events in Fira Barcelona, both at our national stand and outside of it.

This year Poland was represented by delegates from convention bureaux, Professional Congress Organisers, companies organising incentive trips, DMCs, LOT Polish Airlines and congress and fair venues. The list of official IBTM World 2023 participants at the Polish National Stand included:

• ICE Kraków Congress Centre,
• G2A Arena Convention and Exhibition Centre of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship,
• Poznan Congress Center - Grupa MTP,
• Travel Projekt DMC Poland,
• JAN-POL DMC Poland,
• DMC Poland,
• Mazurkas Travel DMC Poland,
• Warsaw Convention Bureau,
• Mazovia Convention Bureau,
• Convention Bureau – Wrocław,
• Kraków Convention Bureau,
• Gdańsk Convention Bureau,
• Poznań Convention Bureau,
• Silesia Convention Bureau,
• Świętokrzyskie Convention Bureau,
• LOT Polish Airlines.

“We had a record turnout at the fair and I was very happy with the results”, says Joanna Montenarh, co-owner of Travel Projekt DMC Poland and vice president of SITE Poland.“For three days I participated in nearly 50 planned business meetings at the Polish national stand, of which as many as 80% were with new potential partners. The interest in organising various events in Poland was exceptionally high. The key to the success of the partners of the Polish Tourism Organisation at trade fairs such as IBTM is the active use of the online platform of the event before it starts and thorough research to fill the calendar of meetings with potential customers. The work done before the fair pays off in the number and quality of the meetings held,” adds Joanna Montenarh.

“The role of the Polish Tourism Organisation (Poland Convention Bureau) is to ensure the best possible conditions for conducting business talks during the IBTM fair in Barcelona. This year we had a record number of entries, that is, 26. Initially, we planned to include 13 partners, but we managed to increase this number to 16. In addition to scheduled business meetings at the stand, which last from 10 AM to 6 PM, we want to provide less formal opportunities for networking with new partners and strengthening relations with existing customers,” says Jaroslaw Marciuk, chief digital marketing specialist at Poland Convention Bureua. “That’s why coffee and tea are served all day, some of the best in Fira Barcelona, according to many visitors. In addition, on the second day, a Happy Hour was organised with regional specialities and a musical performance by Basia Giewont,” adds Marciuk.

Sensory marketing at the fair

Poland Convention Bureau promotes Poland through sensory marketing during trade fairs. Poland can not only be seen in the photography in advertising materials or the design of the stand, but it can also be heard (Musical Mornings and musical happy hour, this year also a playlist of songs on Spotify called Poland. More than you expected), smelled and tasted (coffee and regional specialities), and even touched (rosettes specially designed by the artist Zuzanna Łobodzińska). Representatives of the Polish MICE industry wore rosettes inspired by the work of Zofia Stryjeńska. In this way, Poland refers to IBTM’s main theme – Culture Creators.

The marketing communications featured three exceptional women from Poland and their creativity. There was also a lot of talk about the film The Peasants, the Polish candidate for the Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Film category, which premiered in Spanish cinemas on 1 December.

Details on a special website meetings.poland.travel/lets-talk-business

Regional Happy Hour

During the 2023 happy hour, the Polish stand served regional specialities provided by PCB partners: Silesia Convention Bureau, G2A Arena Exhibition and Congress Centre of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Mazovia Convention Bureau, Świętokrzyskie Convention Bureau, and also by LCK Lublin Congress Centre and Lublin Convention Bureau (Lublin Regional Tourism Organisation).

 “This was our first IBTM fair in Barcelona. As the youngest Polish convention bureau, we are active in acquiring events for our region. We are extremely pleased with how the meetings went and the general atmosphere at the Polish stand, especially during the happy hour, where many guests stopped by to taste specialities also from the Świętokrzyskie region”, reports Katarzyna Batko, manager of the Świętokrzyskie Convention Bureau.

Musical Mornings and concerts

As usual, the Musical Mornings were very popular among the visitors to the fair. Basia Giewont, the Musical Ambassador of Poland, performed for three days from 9:00 to 10:00 at the entrance to the fair. We are pleased that continued and consistent marketing activities bring the intended results. Many guests stop and capture these moments using their phones and share them on social media. In the opinion of many visitors, music is a very good start of the day and brings them into a positive mood ahead of the intense time at the fair. For many, this has become an integral part of the event. This is a path the Poland Convention Bureau wants to stay on, and even develop this concept further.

This year, Basia Giewont also performed at the Regional Happy Hour at the Polish stand, singing various songs inspired by the culture of Podhale, Silesia and Mazovia, including the song “Let`s Talk Business” written by Brian Allan. In Barcelona, the song was performed for the first time in a new interpretation and arrangement by Basia.

The highlight of the second day was a guest performance by Basia Giewont at the Norwegian stand, which attracts the largest number of people every year, making it the biggest music event at IBTM. During a joint performance with DJ Fox (the director of the Bergen Convention Bureau), Basia sang her song “Korale”, which was enthusiastically received by the audience.

Additional activities and summary

The fair is not limited to promoting Poland and business meetings at the national stand. The pandemic significantly changed the way destinations are promoted. It is necessary to involve participants on-site, but it is equally important to bear in mind all those who for various reasons cannot participate and follow events online instead. The use of live broadcasting and social media is essential here. That is why Jarosław Marciuk, representative of the Poland Convention Bureau, took part in the first day of “Ljubljana Talks”, broadcast live from Fira Gran Via in Barcelona. The discussion panel led by Gorazd Čad and Jan Orsic entitled “Baltic Tigers” focused on the promotion of regions and countries from this part of Europe. The panel was attended by representatives of the convention bureaux from Latvia, Finland, Estonia and Poland.

Pod wieloma względami było to wyjątkowe uczestnictwo Polski na targach IBTM w Barcelonie. Dodatkowymi aktywnościami na stoisku było kręcenie specjalnego wideo przez Sina Bunte - influencerkę MICE. Ta akcja jest częścią kończącej się kampanii POLAND. More than you expected. W ramach tych działań ze wspomnianą key opinion lider w przemyśle spotkań na LinkedIn pojawiają się posty o Polsce oraz wkrótce wideo z polskiego stoiska w Barcelonie. Więcej informacji na dedykowanej stronie https://meetings.poland.travel

In many ways, Poland’s participation at this year’s IBTM fair in Barcelona was exceptional. Additional activities at the stand included shooting a special video by Sina Bünte, a MICE influencer. This activity was part of the “POLAND. More than you expected” campaign. As a result of Bünte’s efforts, posts about Poland and videos from the Polish stand in Barcelona were published on LinkedIn. More information on the dedicated website https://meetings.poland.travel  and https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7138145288233324545/

Let's arrange to meet up in Barcelona at IBTM World next year, scheduled for November 19th to 21st, 2024

@callmejaro