Belgian event agencies call on people to share live experiences on social media

The Expert Center Event Marketing from ACC Belgium, the association of Belgian communication agencies, is calling on everyone to share photos and videos of live experiences on social media with the hashtag #WeLoveLive. This could be photos of business meetings – such as a congress or a trade fair – or maybe just an evening in a restaurant with friends, a visit to the cinema or museum, or a lively musical performance. In this way, the live communications industry wants to demonstrate that it does not give in to terror and believes in the power of live gatherings and public events. All the evidence will appear in real time on the website www.welovelive.be.

Impact on tourism and events

Dramatic attacks such as those in Brussels, as well as the earlier incidents in Paris, Tunisia, Turkey and countless other places around the world, are calculated to strike at the heart of the community. People are shocked, feel less safe, and are inclined to alter their daily life as a result. They have a tendency to retreat into their own familiar surroundings. These incidents also have a significant impact on tourism and the events sector. Congresses, fairs, concerts, theatre performances, business events and hotel bookings are cancelled, and planned visits to restaurants and shops are abandoned or delayed.

Connecting people

Johan Vandepoel, CEO of ACC Belgium: ‘Of course we will continue to do everything possible to guarantee the safety of the public during events and special occasions, and as both a citizen and a professional active in a sector which owes its existence to live gatherings, I know we must never give in to these negative feelings. On the contrary, we intend to strive more than ever to promote live connections between people. We want to demonstrate that live offers us the best and most constructive way to a healthy and positive society’.

#WeLoveLive

That is why the social media campaign #WeLoveLive was launched yesterday evening as part of the award ceremony of the Belgian Event Awards, where a round-table discussion also took place about the impact of terrorism on the live sector. The campaign calls on everyone in Belgium, and in the rest of the world, to share photos and videos of their live experiences on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube etc. using the hashtag #WeLoveLive. In this way, ACC Belgium hopes to build a strong community of people who believe more than ever in the power of enjoying together – of experiencing culture, food and drink or professional occasions together – a community of people who love live.