who you'll meet at aime

AIME provides all exhibitors with the opportunity to conduct business with industry buyers and trade visitors from the following sectors: Corporations, Incentive Houses, Professional Conference Organisations, Advertising/PR/Marketing Companies, Sales Promotion Agencies, Travel Agencies, Associations & Societies, Event Management Companies, Government and Education Departments and Special Event Organisers.

At AIME 2007 over 2,600 trade visitors, hosted buyers and media attended the two day event. Listed below is more information about who you'll meet at AIME.

hosted buyer program

Established 15 years ago, AIME’s hosted buyer program is renowned throughout the world for its quality and sophistication. AIME guarantees the attendance of buyers who have been selected and qualified for their high profile and valuable purchasing power. In 2008, we expect in excess of 400 qualified buyers to attend AIME.

In order to qualify to attend AIME all prospective hosted buyers are asked a series of questions regarding their company, level of responsibility, type of events they organise, number and size of events, budget and in which geographical areas they intend to place business. They are also asked to provide details on previous and future events in the Asia Pacific region.

AIME gives preference to new buyers with business to place in the region. In addition, we ensure buyers with verified business to place in the region on an ongoing basis are considered for hosting, even if they have been hosted the year prior. It is important to remember that buyers that you may have met before may be new buyers to other exhibitors.

Hosted buyers represent multinational corporations, national and international associations, government departments, event management companies, incentive houses and professional conference organisers. They are responsible for organising, planning, recommending, researching, influencing and making final decisions for meetings, incentive travel, conferences, exhibitions and special events.

At AIME 2007 approximately 23% of hosted buyers placed business at the exhibition, 92% expect to place business within the next 12 months and 94% in the next 1-5 years.

why the program works
Independent research conducted at AIME 2007 found that:
97% of hosted buyers surveyed were ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ with AIME in terms of meeting their objectives.
96% of hosted buyers surveyed were ‘likely’ to ‘very likely’ to recommend AIME to colleagues in the industry.
95% of respondents stated it was ‘beneficial’ to ‘very beneficial’ to attend AIME on a yearly basis.
94% of respondents placed or were likely to place business as a result of attending AIME.
86% of hosted buyers surveyed said that AIME has a ‘significant advantage’ to ‘tremendous advantage’ over other exhibitions for making contacts and keeping up to date.
85% of respondents considered AIME to be a ‘must attend’ event.

how the program works
Prospective hosted buyers apply online at the AIME website. Applications are evaluated in each region by a panel of industry experts. Buyers must meet strict qualification criteria in order to be hosted and participate in the Pre Scheduled Appointment (PSA) program. Once qualified, all AIME 2008 buyers will be provided with complimentary air travel, hotel accommodation and registration to all activities at AIME. Local Melbourne and Victorian buyers receive free registration to all activities at AIME and attend appointments with exhibitors.

pre scheduled appointments
Once qualified, all hosted buyers must commit to attending Pre Scheduled Appointments over the duration of AIME. At AIME 2007, 7220 appointments were made during the pre matched computer process.

additional appointments
All hosted buyers and exhibitors are encouraged to make additional appointments with exhibitors via the Online Diary. The Online Diary provides fast, effective technology that works with you to maximise any additional time at AIME. At AIME 2007 an additional 2,479 appointments were made through the Online Diary.

trade visitors

Trade visitors are an important part of AIME. They are responsible for organising, planning, recommending, researching and making final decisions for meetings, incentive travel, conferences, business travel and special events but choose not to participate in the pre scheduled appointment program. Trade visitors may be local, national or international visitors.

They are free to walk the exhibition and make appointments with exhibitors where appropriate or they can contact exhibitors in advance via the exhibitor list on the AIME website.

AIME trade visitors mean business. Independent research found that the average value of business placed or intended to be placed by visitors to AIME 2007 was AUD201,000 or approximately US$161,000.

trade visitor business sectors
• Corporations
• Incentive Houses
• Professional Conference Organisations
• Advertising / PR / Marketing Companies
• Sales Promotion Agencies
• Travel Agencies
• Associations and Societies
• Event Management Companies
• Government and Education Departments
• Special Events, Sporting Events and Festival Organisers

Trade visitors take part in AIME to source new products, keep up to date with industry trends, look for new and alternative suppliers, network and make purchasing decisions. The majority of trade visitors organise multiple events per year.

"we conduct research at approximately 25 events per year. aime 2007, in terms
of participant satisfaction and business generated, has continued
the aime tradition in achieving results of the highest order."
Micromex Research