Top 10 Reasons Why It’s Safe to Meet With the Right Protocols in Place

If you’re starved for professional connection, you’re not alone. People everywhere are chomping at the bit to get back to business; yet, variants of COVID-19 cast doubts on whether it’s safe to travel and meet in-person.

Being fully vaccinated, especially if you’ve been “boosted”, and maintaining the good habits and proper protocols you adopted during the pandemic should help you feel better about traveling for work and organizing or attending in-person events.

Given all of the chatter about meeting in-person, it’s important to understand and be armed with the facts.

Here are the Top 10 reasons why it is safe to meet with the right protocols in place:

1. 1. 1. On average, more than 80 percent event attendees are fully vaccinated at events of all sizes, which makes it safer to attend than many daily activities (e.g., going to the grocery store).¹
      2. COVID-19 infection rates at August 2021 events were as much as 95 percent lower than the U.S. at large¹
      3. An increasing number of meeting and event planners (almost 40%!) are now requiring vaccinations for in-person attendees, creating a safer environment for all.²
      4. If you’re fully vaccinated, breakthrough cases are rare, and if you get infected, it’s unlikely that you will require hospitalization.³
      5. From airlines to hotels and convention centers, cleaning and sterilization protocols reduce the risk of transmission as you travel.
      6. MeetSAFE™ guidelines exist to help you reduce risk of transmission at in-person events. Other resources are available from CDC and Event Industry Council.
      7. Good hygiene habits – wearing masks indoors, using hand sanitizer, washing hands frequently – severely reduces the risk of transmission.
      8. Pfizer vaccine boosters have been authorized in the U.S. for certain categories of individuals. Many other countries are considering or have implemented booster shot campaigns as well.
      9. Thousands of people have safely organized in-person events since the start of the pandemic. See examples of how they did it by following #WeMetThere on social media.
      10. And last but not least – don’t miss out on the in-person experience! Meeting and event planners ARE moving forward, with almost 50% currently indicating that they are booking or sourcing new in-person events!²

For more resources and talking points to help you communicate with your event participants and key stakeholders, join us in advocating for the industry.

Together, we can rebuild better and stronger.

Sources:

¹Epistemix/Freeman research, “Key Findings.” Encoreglobal.com, September 2021.

²Encore Customer Survey, October 2021.