The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) announced today the release of Part Eight: Exhibition Organizers – Methods Used to Evaluate Outcome, Areas to Improve, Interest in New Models, the eighth and final report in its series on attendee floor engagement.
Results in this report reveal exhibition organizers are dedicated to ongoing continuous improvement to assure attendee engagement efforts are they best they can be, with 94% indicating they have a process to evaluate these activities.
When it comes to how organizers aim to improve their attendee floor engagement approaches in the future, interactive education and use of analytics to personalize the experience rise to the top.
The report also uncovers an appetite for looking beyond today’s traditional trade show floor model, with more than half saying they are considering new floor models and floor layouts to enhance attendee engagement in the next several years. Results suggest some organizers will experiment with formats that exclude pipe-and-drape floor layouts. Nearly the same percentage of organizers and exhibitors are interested in experimenting with this layout.
“Exhibition organizers are operating in tremendously dynamic, transformative times,” said CEIR CEO Cathy Breden, CMP, CAE. “Exhibitor marketing practices are evolving and so are B2B exhibition attendee engagement preferences. It is vitally important that organizers remain focused on improving and evolving attendee engagement offerings in tandem with these changes. This report provides a useful benchmark report to compare one’s practices to industry norms. It can help support and maximize the success of organizers’ strategic planning efforts.”
This 20-page report provides an overview of exhibition organizer evaluation practices relating to attendee floor engagement efforts. Areas covered are listed below. It also provides commentary on how processes and future plans are put into action per surveyed organizer executives.
- Timing of evaluation processes (whether real-time or post-show)
- Metrics used (12 metrics)
- Areas of focus for future attendee engagement enhancements (11 areas)
- Level of interest in new models and floor layouts (7 models/floor layouts)
In addition to total results, this report identifies unique differences by industry sector, exhibition size, regional scope of exhibition participation, and by independent or association organizer.
About the 2017 CEIR Attendee Floor Engagement Study
Reports from this landmark study series offer exhibitors and organizers a comprehensive resource to help understand the range of attendee engagement tactics used on the exhibition floor and, more importantly, which of these tactics attendees use most – a signal of high engagement. Commentary from exhibitors is also provided illustrating how key trends are put into action.
The 2017 Attendee Floor Engagement Study consists of the following reports:
- Part One: Exhibitor In-booth Tactics – People, Product, Education, Emotion and Other Tactics
- Part Two: Exhibitor In-booth Tactics – Use of Exhibition Organizer Digital Tactics and Other Services
- Part Three: Exhibitor In-booth Tactics – Methods Used to Evaluate Outcomes
- Part Four: Exhibitor In-booth Tactics – Looking to the Future – Areas to Improve and Interest in New Models
- Part Five: Exhibition Floor Networking Opportunities outside Exhibit Booths
- Part Six: Exhibition Floor Product Engagement Activities outside Exhibit Booths
- Part Seven: Exhibition Floor Learning Activities outside Exhibit Booths
- Part Eight: Exhibition Organizers – Methods Used to Evaluate Outcome, Areas to Improve, Interest in New Models
About CEIR
CEIR serves to advance the growth, awareness and value of exhibitions and other face-to-face marketing events by producing and delivering knowledge-based research tools that enable stakeholder organizations to enhance their ability to meet current and emerging customer needs, improve their business performance and strengthen their competitive position. For additional information, visit www.ceir.org.
###
Media Inquiries:
Mary Tucker
+1(972) 687-9226
mtucker@ceir.org
