The road back to hosting live events is hitting speed bumps, according to a recent survey conducted by New York City-based Engine Insights. The findings of its July 5 “Pulse of the Consumer & COVID-19” found the surge in cases of the coronavirus continues to impact people’s willingness to attend events — with just 15 percent of those polled indicating they would be willing to attend a large scale indoor event such as a convention or concert.

“With more than 80 percent of Americans concerned about the recent spike in coronavirus infections and more than three-quarters of the opinion that business openings should be restricted for at least the next couple of months, the corporate events industry continues to be challenged,” says Andy Turton, senior vice president for Engine Insights.

Engine Insights, the research and analytics division of media and marketing services company Engine, has been conducting weekly surveys since mid-March. The approximately 1,000 adults polled are selected from opt-in panels and weighted to U.S. Census data to be demographically representative.

In the survey released on July 5, 83 percent of respondents said they were concerned about a spike in cases in their state. When specifically asked how they felt about attending a large event — either outside or inside — given the spikes, only 28 percent on average stated they would be willing to attend. Gen Z (34 percent) and Millennials (33 percent) reported they were slightly more inclined to attend events than Gen X (30 percent) to Baby Boomers (22 percent).

When asked how long respondents thought people would need to continue to avoid crowds and close or restrict businesses, 76 percent said it would be at least two months, while 33 percent thought it might be longer than six months.

“The challenge now is to work with those sectors that share a common interest (airlines, hotels, restaurants, etc.) to develop, implement and communicate consistently high standards of sanitation and hygiene,” says Turton. “When consumers believe they’ll be safe at every step of the journey, conference attendance numbers will soar again.”

To see more on the findings, click here.