Meet up: conventions bring visitors and dollars to the state.

• Author: Kinder, Peri
• Position: Business Trends

It wasn't just the remarkable scenery of the Salt Lake Valley that attracted Linda McKinsey to the area. It wasn't even the convenience and accessibility provided at the local convention center and hotels. When it came down to it, McKinsey, who is the director of meeting planning for the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, brought her group to Utah for its convention because people at the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau (SLCVB) went above and beyond what was expected to make everything work perfectly.

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"The hospitality in your city is just phenomenal," she says. "It's a very welcoming, warming city. It was such a pleasant experience. People went out of their way to accommodate us and by the time we left, everyone was so thrilled."

McKinsey's group visited Salt Lake last summer, right before the economy took a nosedive, leaving many cities begging for conventions. While many cities--like Las Vegas--have taken a significant hit in convention and trade shows because of the slowing economy, the Beehive State is still attracting such events, according to Shawn Stinson, director of communications at SLCVB. Stinson says businesses are still looking to Utah for a reliable, cost-effective and convenient site to hold their conventions, board meetings and trade shows.

"Right now the economy is really gloom and doom," Stinson says. "People are cutting back, but we're doing all right."

Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the SLCVB had one of its best booking years for conventions in 2008, second only to the flurry of activity during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. In fact, meetings are being booked in Utah as far off as 2021. So why is the Utah convention business flourishing when others across the country are stagnant? Stinson feels many unique factors are bringing new groups to the state.

What it Takes

Though the state's conservative image was once thought to dissuade people from visiting the state, Stinson says Utah may now actually be benefitting from its reputation. In an era of excessive spending, federal bailouts, CEO bonuses and overall dissatisfaction directed toward the corporate world, a perception of restraint and stability brings meeting planners to Utah as opposed to Las Vegas or Los Angeles.

Plus, with affordable room rates, convenience to and from the airport, and a convention district with plenty of meeting space and access to hotels, meeting planners are taking a closer look at Utah when...