I’m seeing some encouraging signs in the meetings market. ASAE just held its largest annual meeting since before the pandemic, attracting more than 5,200 association professionals, exhibitors, and industry partners. People still want to gather, associations still see enormous value in meetings, and organizations are still investing in live experiences.

That’s the good news. The caution is that the bar for proving value is getting higher. Buyers aren’t simply asking whether the speaker was engaging or whether attendees enjoyed the program. That’s not enough. They’re looking harder at what the organization actually gets from the investment. Did people learn something they can use? Did it help develop better leaders, improve performance, navigate change, strengthen the workforce, or solve a business problem? I’ve written about this a lot. You need to sell your ROI to the organization.

ASAE’s newly announced strategic priorities include workforce development, innovation, advocacy, and stronger member engagement. That’s worth paying attention to because those are outcomes. Write about it, talk about it, use it when marketing and selling.

I’ve said for years: Speak in outcomes. Don’t just tell buyers what you’re going to talk about. Tell them what will be different because you were there. What’s in it for them? What changes as a result of your work? Why should an organization invest in bringing you in?

And we need to look beyond the keynote. Workshops, consulting, training, coaching, tools, follow-up, and what I call aftercare can turn a great hour onstage into something an organization can keep using. It can also give you more ways to work with the client and monetize your intellectual property.

The meetings business is strong, but what buyers expect for their investment is changing.

The speakers who thrive will be the ones who can clearly connect what happens on the platform to what happens afterward.

That’s where I think the opportunity is.

Copyright 2026, Lois Creamer. Lois Creamer works with professional speakers who want to book more business, make more money, and monetize their message. 

Check out the newest edition of her book, Book More Business: Make MORE Money Speaking available on Amazon: https://a.co/d/ci7yWxz 

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Reach her in the following ways: Lois@BookMoreBusiness.com 

314-374-4007. Web: https://bookmorebusiness.com/