Meet and greet.

• Position: SPONSORED SECTION: CORPORATE TRAVEL AND MEETING GUIDE

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North Carolina and its neighbors are popular destinations for corporate events. The communities that host them welcome the economic boost.

Andrew Schmidt has a saying: You never know who's in a crowd. The executive director of Greenville-Pitt County Convention and Visitors Bureau says one person may have the power to create a positive effect on the local economy, whether scheduling an event, relocating a company or starting a business. That's why his group emphasizes service and venue when scheduling corporate events. They are an important component of Greenville's overall economic health, he says, outside and inside the meeting-room walls. "It is estimated that approximately one-third of the business that our meeting-and-events hotels and venues host is from the corporate market."

From the coast to the mountains, North Carolina hosts corporate meetings and events for companies representing a variety of industries each year. It's big business. According to a 2014 study by Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Travel Association, sales at tourism-related businesses grew 4.8% in North Carolina in 2014, when the state's tourism industry directly employed almost 296,000 people. Loren Gold, executive vice president of the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau, says 14.4 million visitors spend $2.2 billion in Raleigh and Wake County each year, which supports more than 24,400 jobs and generates more than $219 million in state and local tax revenue. That money impacts a community's economy in several ways, says Jennifer Johnson, president of Raleigh-based The Johnson Meetings Group, which helps businesses plan events.

First are the direct effects, such as spending for venue space, food and lodging. Johnson recalls an instance when she chose to hold a client's event at The LeGrand Center in Shelby. She chose the convention center because she wanted to give back to Cleveland County, which has struggled economically. She says her client was excited to help the community, too. "I like to be able to support these areas and expose people to the local resources these communities have to offer," Johnson says. "Exposure can draw in future business and create financial stability."

Johnson hires local catering companies when possible, for example, and encourages clients to visit local businesses. "When people have dinner off-site, fill up their gas tanks before they leave or shop around the local stores, they bring a lot of revenue to an...