--- title: "New Pricing Models for Meetings" id: "61364" type: "post" slug: "new-pricing-models-for-meetings" published_at: "2022-09-20T14:00:19+00:00" modified_at: "2026-07-11T18:07:47+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/new-pricing-models-for-meetings/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/new-pricing-models-for-meetings.md" excerpt: "Inflation and virtual options have made setting attendee prices for association meetings trickier. Organizations are using creative new pricing structures and marketing strategies to reach their attendance and revenue goals." taxonomy_category: - "Meetings / Events" taxonomy_post_tag: - "Associations Now" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "C-Level" - "Director" - "Executive Team" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » New Pricing Models for Meetings Part of the Deep Dive[Renewal](https://associationsnow.com/deep-dives/renewal-meetings-in-the-post-pandemic-era/) In an economic environment marked by inflation and increased travel costs, many associations have been forced to consider raising registration and other attendance fees for conferences. But that approach doesn’t just risk alienating potential attendees—it also fails to take a holistic look at what motivates people to come to your event. “The straightforward approach of increasing the budget and charging 5 or 10 percent more than you did in the past doesn’t work—you have to have a different conversation and a different value proposition to justify charging more,” said Bill Zimmer, vice president of strategy at 360 Live Media, a strategy, marketing, and design firm. One newer approach is to structure registration fees around the new pandemic-era realities involving travel. When registration opens for an event, typically months before the meeting dates, more attendees are uncertain about their travel budgets or their comfort level with flying to another city. So the traditional two-tier fee schedule—an early-bird and regular rate—ought to be broken up into more pieces. “It’s just like buying an airline ticket with demand-based pricing,” Zimmer said. “Between the day you launch registration and the event, we recommend several price increases along the way to maintain urgency throughout the campaign.” ### Tactical Tweaks Benjamin Rabe, director of event services at the association management company Smithbucklin, says a multi-tiered pricing structure still offers a range of attendee discounts while allowing the association to respond to market realities. One of those is that more attendees are waiting longer to register. “Many more people—30 to 40 percent of registrants—are now booking within 30 days of an event, because they’re able to finally get approval to attend,” Rabe said. “But there’s still some type of cost savings because the price only goes up the week before the event. There are groups that are going from a two-tier system to three or more.” Along with those laddered fee increases, associations can introduce more targeted discounts for first-time attendees, students, and “adjacent audiences,” Zimmer says. Savvier marketing messages that emphasize urgency—48-hour discount offers, for example—can help stoke registrations. And offering more customized experiences onsite for a fee—VIP seating, access to speakers, signed copies of keynote presenters’ books—can also help offset the higher cost of hosting a meeting. Such tweaks, though, should be made with an awareness of who is generally paying to attend. In cases where employers are covering travel and registration, those additional fees might not be off-putting. For a meeting where most attendees are individuals paying their own freight, these extra costs can be a deal breaker. “For a percentage of attendees who are really budget-conscious, we can’t raise their reg fees,” Rabe said. “We don’t want to alienate them by pricing.” [Mark Athitakis](https://associationsnow.com/author/mark-athitakis/) Mark Athitakis, a contributing editor for Associations Now, has written on nonprofits, the arts, and leadership for a variety of publications. He is a coauthor of The Dumbest Moments in Business History and hopes you never qualify for the sequel. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/mark-athitakis/) Tags: [#Associations Now](https://associationsnow.com/tag/associations-now/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## More in this Deep Dive - [Sponsorship Options With Value for Everyone](https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/sponsorship-options-with-value-for-everyone/) - [Tips for Budget-Conscious Meeting Planners](https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/tips-for-budget-conscious-meeting-planners/) - [Three Reasons to Host Your Next Meeting in a Smaller City](https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/three-reasons-to-host-your-next-meeting-in-a-smaller-city/) - [Clear Your Conference-Design Blind Spots](https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/clear-your-conference-design-blind-spots/) - [Keys to Creating Inclusive Meeting Content](https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/keys-to-creating-inclusive-meeting-content/) - [Digital Strategies to Extend In-Person Events](https://associationsnow.com/2022/09/20/digital-strategies-to-extend-in-person-events/) [View the full Deep Dive →](https://associationsnow.com/deep-dives/renewal-meetings-in-the-post-pandemic-era/) ## You Might Like - [PodcastAssociations Now Presents: Beyond the Contract: Building Stronger Destination PartnershipsSeptember 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/24/associations-now-presents-beyond-the-contract-building-stronger-destination-partnerships/) - [VideoMelvin Tennant, CAE, President & CEO of Meet Minneapolis, Welcomes You to Great Ideas 2026September 2, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/02/melvin-tennant-cae-president-ceo-of-meet-minneapolis-welcomes-you-to-great-ideas-2026/) - [VideoASAE TV Daily Recap: Final Day at the 2026 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/08/24/asae-tv-daily-recap-final-day-at-the-2026-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoTerin Bates, MBA, CAE, CX-PRO, Shares Her Experience at the 2026 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 18, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/08/18/terin-bates-mba-cae-cx-pro-shares-her-experience-at-the-2026-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2022%2F09%2F20%2Fnew-pricing-models-for-meetings%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !