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By buying local, Minnesota companies can hold a meeting with an affordable price tag, and deliver value to their bottom line. When Minnesota businesses keep meetings and events within the state, they help sustain Minnesota hospitality businesses and jobs. This is good for business and good for the community.

• The leisure and hospitality industry accounts for 15% of Minnesota’s state sales taxes. (Tax Research Division of the Minnesota Department of Revenue)
• The leisure and hospitality industry provides 10.7% of the state’s total private sector employment. (Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development reporting of Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)
• Minnesota’s hotel and motel managers estimate that 20% of their total room-nights are sold to meeting/convention travelers. (The Economic Impact of Expenditures by Travelers on Minnesota, June 2007-May 2008, Davidson-Peterson Associates)
• Nationally, meetings and events are responsible for 15% of all travel-related spending, creating nearly $40 billion in tax revenue at the federal, state and local level and generating more than one million jobs. (US Travel Association)
• Without the jobs generated by meetings, events and incentive travel, the current unemployment rate of 7.6% would rise to 8.2%, and cost the average US household and additional $136 in taxes annually. (US Travel Association)

Minnesota is a place where business and unique venues intersect.

• Minnesota is a place for business (it’s home to 19 Fortune 500 companies). Minnesota’s dynamic economy has increased the number of Fortune 500 companies from 14 to 19 since 2000. Overall, the state is home to 33 Fortune 1,000 companies, representing a wide variety of industries including but not limited to insurance, banking, chemical manufacturing and food processing. (Fortune 500: money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/states/MN.html, accessed April 2008).
• Even more impressive, Minnesota ranks first among states in the number of Fortune 500 companies per capita, surpassing Illinois (5th), Texas (8th) and California (21st). (Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development)
• Based on indicators such as business cost, regulatory environment and quality of life, Forbes ranks Minnesota as the 14th best state for businesses in 2006. The state ranks particularly high in quality of life (3rd) and labor (14th). (Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development)

Minnesota offers easily-accessible, distinctive spaces, exceptional culture and top-notch natural assets, which groups can enjoy again and again.

• Whether you’re seeking a cosmopolitan hotel in an urban setting, a backcountry camping retreat, an all-inclusive resort, or you require a progressive business center, Minnesota can suit your style.
• From big city amenities to the great outdoors, you will find people who are welcoming and ready to serve.
• Minneapolis Saint Paul is urban, but with a twist: it’s not comprised solely of glass, steel and concrete. We enjoy an unexpected abundance of parks, lakes and natural spaces and we place a high value on the landscape we enjoy. The urban forest delivers a clean, green and vibrant backdrop for the metro. In addition, 75 professional theaters call Minneapolis Saint Paul home, there are more theater seats per capita here than any other U.S. city but New York. Add in our nearly 60 museums (only Chicago and Washington, D.C. have more). Minneapolis and Saint Paul are home to almost 500 arts organizations that support more than 16,000 full-time employees. (Meet Minneapolis)
• Duluth is a bustling inland seaport at the end of the Great Lakes shipping route. With Lake Superior and harbor views, Duluth offers an incredible array of things to see and do, and a large number of hotels and business centers.
• Rochester has numerous hotels, conference centers and restaurants. The home of Mayo Clinic holds national and international audiences in many of its meeting venues.
• St. Cloud is the commercial hub of central Minnesota; offering a variety of shopping and other activities in and around the city, and a large convention center.
• There are many other venues throughout Minnesota that may offer just what you’re looking for in a meeting space.

Meeting in person is still key to the health of your business relationships.
During these challenging economic times, meeting is more important than ever. Face-to-face communications advance the value of your company and increase the esteem and involvement of employees, customers and constituents.

• According to a January 2009 survey from American Express and Meeting Professionals International, meeting and event professionals still see face-to-face meetings as the most effective tool …to build relationships and trust, engender a sense of community, conduct highly interactive programs, engage participants at an emotional level, and demonstrate new products.
• Meetings address many legitimate business purposes: product launches to educate sales force, sales conferences and employee meetings; training and staff development meetings; employee recognition programs to motivate and reward employees for achievement and productivity; product development events designed to generate feedback for research and development purposes; corporate-sponsored events that further charitable purposes; trade shows and similar events that bring prospective buyers and sellers together; employee meetings as a result of company mergers and/or acquisitions for the purpose of alignment of products, brands and cultures

Business travel and events are a smart and cost effective way to retain and develop employee talent, generate ideas and share knowledge that drives future business growth.

• Meetings, events and incentives are essential tools for companies to strengthen business relationships; align and educate employees and customers; and reward business performance.
• Incentive programs are two to three times more effective than cash at motivating employee performance. Companies can spend less on incentive travel than on cash compensation to achieve exceptional productivity from employees.
• The recipients of incentive travel programs are typically hardworking middle class Americans who have earned trips for their exceptional performance.
• According to a recent survey of Fortune 1000 Chief Marketing Officers, meetings and events provide the highest return on investment of any marketing channel.

For more information on this effort, go to meetinminnesota.com.

Contact: Michele Peters
Explore Minnesota Tourism
651.757.1862
Michele.peters@state.mn.us