Connect Signs Exclusive Deal with Tourism Economics to Capture True ROI of MICE Marketing Campaigns

NORCROSS, Ga., Jan. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Connect, a division of Informa PLC, today announced an exclusive partnership with Tourism Economics, a leading global authority in travel research and analysis. This collaboration will provide Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) that advertise with Connect new access to data that shows how their MICE marketing efforts influence the recruitment of meetings and events that drive significant economic impact for their communities.

This is a landmark development for the MICE industry, where destination leaders face growing pressure to show measurable return on marketing investments. Meetings and conventions generate millions of dollars for host destinations, supporting hotels, restaurants, retail, and local jobs. Yet, most attributions have relied on anecdotal evidence rather than concrete data.

Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics company, combines deep understanding of the tourism sector with advanced economic modeling to help destinations answer their most important performance questions.

Through this partnership, clients of both Connect and Tourism Economics will receive exclusive reporting that illustrates how destination marketing contributes to confirmed group business in ways the industry has not previously been able to quantify.

"Destinations have been asking for true meetings attribution for years, and this partnership finally makes it possible," said Erik Evjen, vice president of Americas at Tourism Economics. "By pairing Connect's reach into the planner community with the depth of our Symphony data, we can help DMOs prove which meetings investments are working and where to double down."

As the premier B2B producer of tradeshows connecting destinations with event organizers, Connect views this partnership as a critical step forward for the industry. Planners who attend Connect events represent many of the world's most influential corporations, associations, and brands.

To demonstrate the value of this partnership, a Tier 1 destination recently received new insights linking its marketing efforts with Connect to future business outcomes. According to Chris Conwell, vice president of media at Connect, the findings confirmed the effectiveness of the program and highlighted the need for clearer attribution across the MICE sector.

Partnering with an industry leading research organization such as Tourism Economics also strengthens Connect's role in advancing data driven decision making across the market, Conwell added.

"We are thrilled to unveil the breakthrough solution we have been developing in partnership with Tourism Economics over the past year," said Conwell. "B2B attribution has been the missing piece of the puzzle for our industry, and we have finally cracked the code. Our clients will now have visibility into their ROI and the strategic insights needed to optimize future group business investments. By combining comprehensive vendor and supplier data, we are delivering the attribution capabilities that the market has long thought to be impossible."

For more information or to schedule an interview with Connect Managing Director Matt Johnson, contact Jordan Bouldin, VP of Marketing, at jbouldin@informa.com.

ABOUT CONNECT

Connect is a leader in the events, travel, and sports events industry. Part of Informa PLC, Connect introduced the popular Marketplace format to the meetings industry and now produces national shows for meeting planners in the Corporate, Sports, Diversity, Association, Faith, and Travel sectors as well as other state- and region-specific meetings- and hospitality-focused events. More information about the company's brands and services is available here.

ABOUT INFORMA

Informa is a leading international B2B markets, live and on-demand events and digital services group. They connect businesses and professionals in 30+ industries with the knowledge they need to learn more, know more and do more. Informa has hundreds of global brands, products and services and employs 11,000 employees in about 30 countries worldwide.

Informa Connect is a content-led, live and on-demand experiences business which connects professionals with knowledge, ideas and opportunities. Informa Connect, a community of over 1,500 colleagues globally, offers connection through events, media and research. They service a number of different industries including Finance, Bio Tech and Pharma, Restaurant and Food, Catering, Event Planning, Pop Culture, Marketing, Law, Energy, HR, Sustainability, Construction.

Find out more about Informa and the Informa Connect division at http://www.informa.com and http://www.informaconnect.com.

ABOUT TOURISM ECONOMICS

Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics company, is a global leader in travel forecasting, economic impact analysis, and attribution modeling. We help destinations and hospitality brands translate data into actionable, apolitical insight to guide marketing, policy, and investment decisions. Learn more here.

CONTACT: Jordan Bouldin, jordan.bouldin@informa.com

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