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How to Measure Event Marketing Success

how to measure event marketing success

Knowing how to measure event marketing success has long been a key factor in determining the degree of success of any event or enterprise. The development of event technology has led to new and more effective ways to monitor ROI. Therefore, first of all, it’s necessary to learn about the use of technology and to know how to interpret the results.

Reasons to measure event marketing success

Thorough research in the event industry field has allowed us to develop event marketing ROI metrics and methods for evaluating the effectiveness of events. There are a number of reasons why you should always measure your event’s success:
For your event company: You can use the data to measure the success of future events and then change the marketing mix, reallocate the budget, and direct it towards the most effective campaigns or channels to ensure marketing success. That way, you can clearly see what works and what doesn’t.
For sponsors and participants of events: They can appreciate the attractiveness of the goods or services presented and the visibility of their presentation. Based on this, decisions are made on securing sponsorship, finding insights on getting more income, and attracting more attendees, sponsors, exhibitors, or further cooperation with your company.
For visitors: Using the application, you can evaluate how much the guests are enjoying being present at the event in real time. On this basis, it’s possible to identify both successful and unsuccessful elements and make timely adjustments to the program, such as changing the soundtrack or a menu item, etc.
There are also some approaches for how to calculate ROI for event marketing that you should use for ultimate success. Keep reading the article to learn more!

Ways to measure marketing success and metrics / KPIs

There is a range of methods for calculating event marketing ROI and metrics / KPIs.

Setting SMART goals

The SMART approach is the best one, so while determining your event marketing strategy, it needs to conform to the following criteria: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely. This helps with alleviating common project challenges and helps to set specific goals to better measure success after the event is complete. 

How to set goals

  1. Make sure your goals are clear and reachable.
  2. Each one should match the SMART criteria.
  3. Each should be measurable.
  4. Explain each SMART goal to the team.

Remember, these goals are specifically designed to provide structure and guidance throughout an event projecting to all participants of the process.
For example:
SMART
 
Measure gross revenue
This is an overall monetary amount that the company receives as a result of running events; the costs are not taken into account. It is not the main indicator for many companies, although in some situations, it is quite important to measure.
For example, you measure event gross revenue—receipts of a business before any deductions for any purpose except those items that are specifically exempted (venue, equipment, catering, etc.)

Use registration metrics

You can also measure event marketing performance on the registration page. Use registration metrics, the techniques that are issued as a base for registration methods, because they provide information that indicates when the registration process is going in the right direction.

  • Number of online registrations

You can track registrations with the metric that reflects the number of event registrants with active registration as well as see reports of the end of the calendar year or any other period.
For example the number of the first RISE event registrations remained at the same level as the previous year, whereas the first registrations of FinTech saw an increase, etc.

  • Number of onsite check-in and registrations

Event apps allow you to track the onsite check-in process and analyse visitor involvement in real time during events.

  • Reach on social media

Are you doing everything possible to grow and influence your audience on social media? If so, you should be measuring event marketing performance on social media either directly on each used platform or via an event marketing tool.

  • Social media engagement

Apart from basic social media rates, you should also measure the depth of customer engagement on the platforms you use for social media marketing. By now, you know there are tools to manage social media engagement, and GEVME is another way to make each channel work in your favour.

  • Mentions in online media

With GEVME, you also get an easy-to-use media monitoring tool that allows you to track social mentions, analyse your event competitors, and find influencers or other mentions across online media.

  • Attributed website visits

Use marketing tools when you want to track overall visits. In general, when someone reaches your website from any referring source outside of your website, their domain can be measured too. Usually, analytics tools measuring the success of an event are focused on each visit, even if a person goes to multiple pages on your site.

Measuring event ROI

You put a lot of effort and numerous hours into your event. Of course you want some proof that your time was worth it. Here’s how to measure your event ROI:

  • Overall event ROI

Events can also have goals, metrics, benchmarks, and a clear role to play in the overall marketing strategy. They help with branding, learning about a company, and attracting a better audience. That’s what overall event ROI calculates.

  • Cost per attendee

Cost per contact, also referred to as cost per attendee, is another useful metric designed to calculate how many overall contacts your event generated. This should be analysed in conjunction with other metrics.
For example, if the event was aimed at the formation and development of leadership qualities, then ROI should be evaluated on the basis of the following:
1) The financial costs
2) The number of people and their success in this leadership direction

Brand impact

Brand measurements are viewed as successful tools for estimating the subjective parameters of brand execution in a given market and time, enabling the event firm to quantify the adequacy of the brandbuilding movement in reference to brand investment (monetary sources) and brand sway (growth outputs) in the business.

Conducting surveys by email / app

GEVME has built stunning survey forms; you may use these to conduct event measurements with the help of customer feedback, to collect survey data, to get detailed insights, and so on.

Measuring event engagement

You’ll discover some strategies demonstrated by Gevme to quantify participant commitment levels at professional events and to discover exactly how much of an impression your event really made. Begin by breaking down your site traffic and defining event marketing key performance indicators. At the point where individuals have enthusiasm for your event, your website is the primary spot they will visit.

Session attendance

This metric report provides an overview of when attendees joined and left your website sessions. It also gives you an idea of how long attendees were present on your landing page.

Session engagement

Session length, frequency, and retention rate are also good ways to measure success. Session engagement indicates the amount of time that a user spends in your app in one session.

Event app engagement

This method includes app downloads (KPI to evaluate the interaction your attendees had with the technology you provided for the event). For better results onsite, use GoSmart apps.

Social media engagement

Again, social media engagement indicates your audience reach via social media channels. Your social media accounts’ reach is the number of people who have seen your social media content.

Acquiring customers & educating your audience

You can also procure clients by driving advancement toward key objectives. Here are five ways you can acquire new customers through providing timely and appropriate content and learning events. Take care of your group’s issues by teaching them about your items, apps, devices, and other offerings.

Direct purchases

Direct purchases are permitted for the procurement of goods and services, including your event apps, event branding, design, and other event services. You can apply metrics used to measure success from direct purchases, if appropriate.

Software trials and demos

Downloading a free trial from any SAS, including event technology software, will help you experience event technology before your event sign-up for an event or ticket sales. With the help of marketing tools, the clicks from interested users may be measured and included in the marketing report.
Request a demo right away!

Samples given out

This is a good tool to gather a community around your products. A product sample is a sample of a consumer product given to the consumer free of charge so that he or she may try it out before committing to a purchase.
For example, it can be branded event attributes, freebies, swags, early bird tickets, free apps, promo materials, event tracking equipment, RFID products, and so much more.

In-event surveys

There are some surveys that you can conduct during the event by means of imprinting them into the program, introducing them via apps or mobile devices or as a contest or some other interaction form, and tracking the result immediately with innovative event marketing metrics. To make sure that you’re getting the most valuable event feedback, there are lists of powerful during the event or post-event survey questions that you should be asking.

Post-event NPS survey

So you’ve just finished your event. Attendees are engaged and excited. Capitalize on this by using a post-event NPS (Net Promoter Score) survey for feedback. NPS surveys often include a single follow-up question that is easy to answer. Event-makers also tend to use longer surveys to gather post-event info in greater detail.
For example, “What was the most _______ at the event?”

Email marketing rates

You can also evaluate the open rate, or if the email message invites people to click on the registration form or any other link, you can check the click-through rate and see how many people actually responded to your call to action.

Number of sponsor partnerships

The same applies to your sponsorship number. Of course, the event has a number of longstanding corporate sponsors you can count on and include in the marketing plan with certain KPIs. Use the tools to measure your event’s success level. Using event apps to measure engagement will also help you track sponsor partnerships.
Event marketing KPIs example:
metrics

How Gevme can help to measure event marketing success

GEVME provides event gurus with all the necessary metrics for event marketing for effective work and achieving results; online registration, email marketing, onsite registration, and survey modules are fully integrated. Due to well-integrated solutions, marketers will have a clear picture of the event dashboard and a systematic approach to forming the sales funnel steps and the results at each step.
We will reveal how to measure event advertising achievement in a variety of ways. Setting SMART objectives, utilising enrollment measurements, and estimating social media all help to measure your ROI in different ways.
Utilising our event applications and online platform to quantify commitment is simple and affordable for everyone. You may also direct surveys, discover how to ascertain event ROI depending on the working measurements you use, enhance their promoting techniques, etc. At any rate, learning about ROI measurements will enable you to generally improve event organisation.

Event success can be measured in different ways 

We’ve uncovered how to measure event marketing success in a variety of ways: setting SMART goals, using registration metrics, measuring event ROI in different ways, using Gevme event apps and social media to measure engagement, and conducting surveys. Clearly, the sky’s the limit when it comes to professional event technologies. You must choose which one to use and how to measure your success accordingly. Reach out and ask for our help at any time! You are welcome to leave your comments below.
 

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