BIT Milano 2017 News

12.12.2016

The industry has turned its attention to the new spring Bit, which is to take place at fieramilanocity Institutions – specifically from Mediterranean countries – seem to be particularly interested in the new project.

The conference area is also growing. Milan, 29 September 2016 – The run-up to Bit 2017 is continuing on as we head toward the new spring event, to take place at fieramilanocity from Sunday, 2 April to Tuesday, 4 April. Many key players in the industry – starting with Italian and international institutions, especially in the Mediterranean area of Europe – are voicing their appreciation for the many innovations the leading tourism show in Italy has put into place.

In addition to the new dates and the new location, with the show taking place in the liveliest month in Milan – in between a week focused on art and another focused on design – there are also new show itineraries that have been created by industry experts to optimize one’s visit. The show concept is also ever more focused on business matching and has been enhanced with a new, broader selection of conferences.

As to this last point, the show is to get a great boost from the fact that the city exhibition centre has been integrated with MiCo, the largest – and one of the most modern – conference centre in Europe. Thanks to the availability of meeting rooms created for different needs and equipped with the most advanced technological features, there are to be targeted, effective workshops and meetings for the trade market, from travel agencies to all of the other representatives of the industry.

Thus BitMilano is responding ever more effectively to the needs industry professionals have expressed – to have a “tool kit” of concrete know-how, and for the show to take place during the days that are most in line with the way agencies work. The new period chosen is one of the liveliest of the year, and the excellent logistics offered mean there are direct connections with motorways and the nearby M5 underground station.

All of these factors allow the new Milan city location to make the most of synergies with the internationally recognized capital of Italian style, both in terms of the tourism business as well as in terms of allowing real travellers to discover the most exciting, engaging innovations that the industry has to offer.

The show’s layout is also to undergo some changes. In addition to the four areas - Leisure, Luxury, MICE and Sport (with this last category – an all-new development for this edition – being extended from one to three days) – there are to be three itineraries for visitors dedicated to three segments seeing a great deal of growth: Food and Wine, quintessential products of excellence; Weddings, with our country as one of the most sought-after destinations in the world; and Digital, a world that is constantly evolving.

The three itineraries are already being developed and will be further defined over the coming months thanks to the collaboration with curators, experts that have been identified as being among the most important influencers in their respective industries. It is also possible to plan a more targeted, and therefore, more effective visit by following the directions of where the various exhibitors are located in the itineraries. Visitors can also experience the potential of these niches “live” via special dedicated “experiential” spaces that will feature scents, tastes, sounds, images and inspirations.

And targeted business opportunities will be the key theme of the entire show. Bit is reaffirming its investment in hosted buyers and updating Fiera Milano's proprietary platform called EMP, the Expo Matching Program, which is one of the most accurate matching engines bringing together supply and demand in the entire trade fair industry. In 2016, this program allowed Bit to set up more than 16,000 appointments.

The 20-minute meetings with buyers are returning as well – travel bloggers will also now be allowed to take part. These meetings allow exhibitors to make contacts with influencers active throughout the entire network. There are also to be initiatives to favour aggregation among travel agencies in terms of areas that represent markets of great growth potential for incoming and outgoing travel.

There are also many new “top secret” initiatives that are still in the works in order to draw in travellers, especially in the Sport area, which has established itself as a place that truly has to be experienced. These initiatives will be unveiled in the coming months. The run-up to the show will also marked by a communications campaign that is new in terms of its image and placement. It will see greater online presence and on the major social media channels.

Thanks to wide-ranging and flexible product segmentation based on demand, Bit 2017 is to represent a big comeback for the business platform that has made history for the way it brings together supply and demand when it comes to tourism offerings in Italy. It boasts an agile formula able to respond to the continuous and rapid evolution of markets that focus on a more specialized traveller, the “experiential” and an ever more technological approach.

Bit 2017 is to take place in fieramilanocity in Milan from Sunday, 2 April to Tuesday, 4 April.