Metrics that we can apply to gauge attendance and engagement at our events is becoming an important component of how we benchmark our success. The Planner Guru learns more.
One of the conundrums we face as events organisers and planners is how we gauge audience interaction. This is key for understanding how our events perform, which is directly proportionate to our ROI.
A recent article by EventMB highlights why data collation and collection is currently such a challenge: “More than ever before, event planners are swimming in data about their events, but actually, making use of that data can be frustratingly difficult. Different platforms use different metrics to record the same information, and data is often siloed between various programmes. The result? In a sea of data, it’s sometimes hard to find a drop of useful information.”
Standardised solutions
Explori, a research firm specialising in events, believes that the Virtual Standard Export Format (VSef), may be the new data standard for both virtual and hybrid eventing experiences.
“The industrywide initiative aims to establish industry standards for data that can be shared across platforms and programmes, so that event profs can use data to gain more insight into their customers and establish benchmarks for attendee engagement and impact. The results for the event industry could be significant, with event profs able to use big data to get a better view of event performance and ROI,” says EventMB.
Top tips for measuring ROI
The rule of thumb for calculating ROI is to, firstly, understand your key performance indicators (KPIs), PLUS your event results MINUS the total cost of your event from the total sales revenue then MULTIPLY this by 100 to determine ROI.
Other metrics that can be applied when determining what sort of return you may have achieved may include:
- Return on objectives;
- Return on engagement;
- Return on information.
“Events, especially B2B events, beget a longer sales cycle. Brand experiences, though pivotal, are just one touchpoint in a potentially multi-year cycle. It can be months before an event’s effect on its audience concretely emerges. Units of measurement that are relevant to one event type will not be pertinent to the next. At this point your team is questioning whether hosting an event is a value-add, considering the results may not be immediate. Your pitch to decision-makers is that with proper planning and execution the quality of the results, over time will be worth it,” says Total Event.
Read How to Expand ROI of Virtual and Hybrid Events by Hopin here.
