Measuring What Matters in Events
Measuring event effectiveness requires an investment of time and resources. Is it worth it? MPI’s annual “EventView 2009 North America Report” concludes that companies that measure event performance are nearly 41% more likely to expect increases in their marketing budget than those that do not. For me, that makes a compelling case for measuring what matters in events.
Here are some of the approaches to measurement that I’ve heard about from our meeting planner clients at MeetMax and those that I’ve learned from my own experience producing events and conferences.
- You Get Partial Credit Just For Asking. Numbers of invitations sent, mentions in the press and in the blogosphere are all indicative of the impact on your company’s brand
- Everyone In. Make sure you are counting all of your attendees, even those that attend remotely.
- Beyond Counting Attendees: Establish metrics that are directly related to your business objectives for the event.
- Quantify the Cost: How much is a qualified sales prospect worth to your company? What does it cost you to generate one meaningful connection with a qualified prospect?
- Count the number of qualified prospects, based on demographics, at the event
- Determine the number of qualified prospects with whom your staff (or your sponsors or exhibitors) had a face-to-face dialog?
- Calculate the cost of a single meaningful interaction, by dividing the total cost by the number of meaningful connections made.
- Compare the cost of generating that sales prospect to the value of a sales prospect.
- Survey to Measure Perceptions and Satisfaction to Determine Whether Your Event Was Memorable and Met Expectations.
- Track The Long-Term Impact, Including Sales Conversions, Trends And Industry Averages.
Are you using an innovative approach to measuring event effectiveness? Post a comment and share your approach with us.