CEIR Report: How Do Exhibitors Spend Their Marketing Dollars?
March 12, 2015
In a series of special reports, the Center for Exhibition Industry Research recently released its latest one - “The Marketing Spend Decision”.
This study profiled marketing channel spending of business-to-business exhibitors from small to large-sized organizations, across all exhibition industry sectors.
"This report offers exhibitors an invaluable tool to determine whether their marketing expenditures, objectives for exhibiting and success metrics align with industry norms," said CEIR President and CEO Brian Casey, CEM.
He added, "The results of this study affirm the enduring value of business-to-business exhibitions."
More than 640 executives from organizations that exhibited at trade shows answered the survey.
Ninety percent of those surveyed said the top ranked important objectives for exhibiting were the following:
To reach/ identify new customers/sales leads;
Build product/company awareness;
Meet with existing customers
Though both marketing and sales metrics were used by an overwhelming percentage of exhibitors to evaluate the success of exhibiting, sales metrics prevailed as the most important success metric to management, according to 78 percent of surveyed executives.
Six out of 10 exhibiting companies used the number of sales closed after the show as a success metric. For most of these exhibitors, two-thirds, the sale needs to occur within six months following the event to be counted towards the ROI of that exhibition.
Findings indicate that the business-to-business exhibition channel was the marketing channel of choice among brand marketers who include this channel in their marketing mix. In 2013 and 2014, this channel captures more than 40 percent of marketing dollars.
Median spend per exhibition in 2014 was estimated to be $20,000.
The most popular digital marketing tactics exhibitors reported engaging in were the standard staples documented in other recent CEIR research, with the most popular tactics including e-mail, 74 percent, social media, 63 percent, websites/microsites, 56 percent, and online advertising, 48 percent.
Data suggested the industry continues to recover from the economic downturn. Exhibitors are slowly adding exhibitions, though cautiously. In 2014, the median number of exhibitions participated in was five, an increase from four in 2013, and is projected to remain at five in 2015.
Results indicated that the median booth size will not budge beyond the 100 NSF dimension in 2015.
The expectation of little organic growth among existing exhibitors is affirmed when evaluating the typical size of an exhibitor’s booth to the size of the exhibitor’s booth of the prior year.
Overwhelmingly, roughly 70 percent or more of all exhibitors used the same booth size as in the previous year. Only one out of 10 increase their booth size and less than 10 percent decrease their booth size.
Click here to download The Marketing Spend Decision. IAEE members can access the CEIR library and reports at no cost – a benefit of IAEE membership.
Partner Voices
HERE, hosting responsible meetings and caring for our communities are top priorities. Through its 'Focused on What Matters: Embracing Humanity and Protecting the Planet' philosophy, MGM Resorts commits to creating a more sustainable future, while striving to make an impact in the lives of employees, guests, and the communities in which it operates.
Water Stewardship Efforts
MGM Resorts understands the importance of using water efficiently, especially in the desert destination of Las Vegas. Conserving water has always been part of the mission, but MGM Resorts has expanded its ambition into water stewardship.
In 2022, MGM Resorts President and CEO Bill Hornbuckle signed the CEO Water Mandate—a UN Global Compact initiative mobilizing business leaders to advance water stewardship. MGM Resorts International was the first gaming company to take this important step.
MGM Resorts replaced 200,000 square feet of real grass with drought-tolerant landscaping in Las Vegas.
MGM Resorts pledges to reduce water withdrawal intensity by 33% by 2025 and by 35% by 2030.
From 2007-2021, use of more than 5.6 billion gallons of water was avoided because of conservation efforts.
Caring for One Another
MGM Resorts’ Food Donations Program collects and preserves unserved food from conventions held at MGM Resorts properties, then safely donates to food insecure people in the community. Since the program’s launch in 2016, more than 3.7 million meals toward a 2025 goal of 5 million meals have been donated into the community. Donations include:
Unserved perishable prepared foods from events
Perishable unprepared food from MGM Resorts’ kitchens
Nonperishable food items from minibars and warehouses
The collaboration with Southern Nevada’s primary food bank, Three Square, has developed the infrastructure needed to safely collect, transport, and store food from MGM Resorts properties in Las Vegas, reducing food waste while serving the community.
Fostering Diversity and Inclusion
To MGM Resorts, a diverse and talented workforce is essential to success. By cultivating innovative strategies that consider multiple perspectives and viewpoints, the company creates an inclusive workplace culture that benefits its employees and community. MGM Resorts takes pride in being a welcoming home for veterans, individuals with disabilities, people from diverse backgrounds, LGBTQ+ community members, and more. This commitment to inclusion is reflected in the company's recruitment and hiring practices and its social responsibility initiatives. From the workplace to the community, MGM Resorts' commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion remains unwavering, and its efforts continue to create a more equitable and sustainable world for all.
MGM Resorts understands its responsibility to contribute to the social and economic progress of the communities in which it operates. HERE, we embrace humanity.
Add new comment