Cvent CONNECT to be hosted outside Las Vegas for first time since 2014
SAN ANTONIO (October 18, 2023) – Visit San Antonio announces Cvent, an industry-leading meetings, events, and hospitality technology provider, will bring its annual customer and industry conference to the city in 2024. Cvent CONNECT is expected to bring thousands of high-level corporate and association meeting executives, marketers and hospitality professionals to the city next summer, many of whom will be visiting San Antonio for the first time.
Visit San Antonio, the city’s official sales and marketing organization, secured Cvent CONNECT for June 10-13, 2024. This pre-eminent trade industry event has been hosted in Las Vegas since 2014.
Thousands of event and hospitality professionals and decision-makers are expected to attend the multi-day conference in San Antonio. More than 50% of the buyers who attend represent corporate meetings from sectors including healthcare/biotech/pharma, financial services, software and internet, business services, and manufacturing – sectors key to San Antonio’s meetings and conventions business.
“We are thrilled to welcome Cvent CONNECT to San Antonio in 2024,” said Marc Anderson, President and CEO, Visit San Antonio. “Not only has Cvent been, and continues to be, crucial to us as a business partner; now, they will be our cherished guests in 2024. In fact, more than 70% of Visit San Antonio’s leads come through Cvent’s platform, and we look forward to growing that as a host city. This aligns with Visit San Antonio’s recent strategy to strongly pursue key industry meetings and increase corporate and association meetings for our city, further driving this critical sector of our local economy.”
From 2021 to 2023, Visit San Antonio turned more than 800 Cvent leads into definite bookings, resulting in 570,000 contracted room nights with an economic impact of $373.3 million for the city.
Cvent’s customer and user buying power is formidable, more than $14 billion of group business value was sourced through its platforms in 2022 alone. Future association and corporate business booked because of being a host city in 2024 will be a game-changer for San Antonio in the years following hosting. In addition, the direct economic impact of hosting Cvent CONNECT 2024 is estimated at $7.06 million for San Antonio.
“We’re excited for the opportunity to bring our Cvent CONNECT attendees to San Antonio,” said Rachel Andrews, head of Cvent Global Meetings and Events. “Marc and the Visit San Antonio team laid out an incredible vision and we can’t wait to partner with them to show off exactly why the city is one of the fastest growing destinations in the country.”
As host city, San Antonio’s edge will go beyond lead generation, networking with potential customers and brand recognition to immersing key customers directly into the destination experience only San Antonio can provide.
“For many CONNECT 2024 attendees, the gathering will be their first time in San Antonio, and there’s no better way to expose key decision-makers to our authentic culture, culinary scene, walkability, first-tier meeting facilities and stellar hotel properties than for them to experience all this in person. San Antonio looks forward to warmly welcoming this critical industry meeting and the continued growth of our hospitality industry, an important economic generator in our local economy,” said Ron Nirenberg, Mayor of San Antonio.
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About CVENT
Cvent is a leading meetings, events, and hospitality technology provider with 4,800+ employees and 21,000+ customers worldwide as of December 31, 2022. Founded in 1999, the company delivers a comprehensive event marketing and management platform and offers a global marketplace where event professionals collaborate with venues to create engaging, impactful experiences. Cvent is headquartered in Tysons, Virginia, just outside of Washington D.C., and has additional offices around the world to support its growing global customer base. The comprehensive Cvent event marketing and management platform offers software solutions to event organizers and marketers for online event registration, venue selection, event marketing and management, virtual and onsite solutions, and attendee engagement. Cvent’s suite of products automate and simplify the event management lifecycle and maximize the impact of in-person, virtual, and hybrid events. Hotels and venues use Cvent’s supplier and venue solutions to win more group and corporate travel business through Cvent’s sourcing platforms. Cvent solutions optimize the event management value chain and have enabled clients around the world to manage millions of meetings and events.
About Visit San Antonio
Visit San Antonio is a 501(c)6 and serves as the sales and marketing arm of San Antonio as a leading leisure and meetings destination. In 2022, San Antonio welcomed approximately 34.8 million visitors. Hospitality is one of the top five industries in the city, contributing $19 billion into the local economy annually and employing more than 140,000 in 2022. More information about Visit San Antonio and the city’s vast offerings can be found at VisitSanAntonio.com.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
VISIT SAN ANTONIO
Dee Dee Poteete
DeeDee.Poteete@VisitSanAntonio.com
210/800-6340
CVENT
Erica Stoltenberg
Estoltenberg@cvent.com
571/378-6240