Face-to-face meetings and events generated $325 billion in direct selling and $845 billion in business sales in 2016, according to a new study commissioned by the Events Industry Council.

Researchers with the firm Oxford Economics surveyed meeting planners, exhibitors and venues and analyzed existing data on business travelers to extrapolate the economic impact of the U.S. meetings industry. The survey was funded by EIC with support from the Meetings Mean Business coalition, a group of travel industry associations and businesses.

In total, 1.9 million meetings were held in 2016, with 251 million participants, according to the report's authors. On average, the direct spending associated with 43 meeting participants supported one U.S. job, including both direct and indirect impacts.

Individual event participants spent $1,294 per meeting on average. Meetings generated $104 billion in federal, state and local taxes, for an average tax impact of $879 per U.S. household.

"There's been a critical need for information quantifying the significance of face-to-face meetings and business events to the U.S. economy," said Susan Robertson, EVP at ASAE and chair of EIC's board of directors. "Hosting an event, convention or trade show brings new revenue to industries across the country." http://bit.ly/2CmWISW

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