Joe Colangelo
Joe Colangelo is the CEO and co-founder of Bear Analytics. He drives the strategic vision designed to unite technology, user-friendly visualization and the client story.
The Four Reasons Company Loyalty is Your Event’s Most Important Metric
June 9, 2017
On your post-event survey, are you asking attendees if this is their first time attending your event?
Anecdotally, I can tell you that 70-80 percent of event organizers we speak with ask their attendees this question. And it makes sense: the keys to growing your event are based on your ability to attract new attendees while retaining your current customer base.
If an attendee doesn’t return to the event the following year, or ever, is it really a lost opportunity?
Did they have a poor onsite experience?
or
Did they leave their company – maybe the industry all-together?
There are numerous reasons why we are unable to understand why an attendee does not return, since these event “abandoners” are the most difficult group to contact and survey. Individuals can be a challenge to track but your company-level registration data can tell more of the story.
Companies tend to be more stable and remain in the same industries longer than individuals. By tracking a company’s participation at your event over the last 4-5 years, you can identify organizational or company loyalty. This helps you understand how well your events are retaining, attracting and growing participation at a higher level than just tracking individuals.
Here are four impact areas you can explore once you’ve determined company-level loyalty at your events:
1. Trends around companies making the event investment decision at the corporate level and not the individual level. This is one of the post-recession outcomes that has changed the shape of attendee marketing the most.
2. New company participation. This is a fantastic metric for measuring your event brand’s pull in the marketplace and industry you serve.
3. Company loyalty benchmarks. This will allow you to group companies according to most and least loyal and craft targeted marketing messages.
4. Most Valuable Company Program. You can recognize and reward the companies that invest the most money and send the most attendees – this is the “heart” of your event.
One note of caution: registration data is typically human-generated, so you can expect to see mismatched company names, subsidiaries, departments at universities and all kinds of other weird things. Don’t panic. This is easily solved by harmonizing the company names and creating a company name dictionary. A company name dictionary allows you to take these “dirty” company values and standardize them into consolidated and usable values.
You can standardize the names given to companies (for example, “Bear Analytics” versus “Bear Analytics, Inc.”) and the values each represents. By standardizing the spelling variants of company names in different registration records, you can determine which name should be displayed and used for company level stats.
Time and time again, we found when events retain current participating companies/organizations and attract new organizational participation, they increase registration revenue and are in a stronger position to price and sell sponsorships. So, don’t wait – the data is in your hands and you can start to make an impact with it today.
Partner Voices
Overview:
The award-winning Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) goes the extra mile to make every day extraordinary by offering customer service excellence and industry-leading partnerships. From their dedicated in-house Rigging team to their robust Exhibitor Services, The Center of Hospitality brings your imagination to life by helping you host unforgettable meetings and events. With more than 2 million square feet of exhibit space, world-class services and a dream destination, we are committed to making even the most ambitious conventions a reality.
In October 2023, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners voted to approve allocating Tourist Development Tax funding for the $560 million Phase 5A completion of the OCCC. The Convention Way Grand Concourse project will include enhancements to the North-South Building, featuring an additional 60,000 square feet of meeting space, an 80,000- square-foot ballroom and new entry to the North-South Building along Convention Way.
“We are thrilled to begin work on completing our North-South Building which will allow us to meet the growing needs of our clients,” said OCCC Executive Director Mark Tester. “As an economic driver for the community, this project will provide the Center with connectivity and meeting space to host more events and continue to infuse the local economy with new money and expanding business opportunities.”
Amenities:
The Center of Hospitality goes above and beyond by offering world-class customer service and industry-leading partnerships. From the largest convention center Wi-Fi network to custom LAN/WAN design, the Center takes pride in enhancing exhibitor and customer experience.
The OCCC is the exclusive provider of electricity (24-hour power at no additional cost), aerial rigging and lighting, water, natural gas and propane, compressed air, and cable TV services. Convenience
The Center is at the epicenter of the destination, with an abundance of hotels, restaurants, and attractions within walking distance. Pedestrian bridges connect both buildings to more than 5,200 rooms and is within a 15-minute drive from the Orlando International Airport. The convenience of the location goes hand-in-hand with top notch service to help meet an event’s every need.
Gold Key Members
The OCCC’s Gold Key Members represent the best of the best when it comes to exceptional service and exclusive benefits for clients, exhibitors and guests. The Center’s Gold Key memberships with Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld Orlando and Walt Disney World greatly enhance meeting planner and attendee experiences offering world-renowned venues, immersive experiences and creative resources for their events.
OCCC Events:
This fiscal year, the OCCC is projected to host 168 events, 1.7 million attendees, and $2.9 billion in economic impact.
The Center’s top five events during their 2022-2023 fiscal year included:
AAU Jr. National Volleyball Championships 2023
200,000 Attendees
$257 Million in Economic Impact
MEGACON 2023
160,000 Attendees
$205 Million in Economic Impact
Open Championship Series 2023
69,500 Attendees
$89 Million in Economic Impact
Sunshine Classic 2023
42,000 Attendees
$54 Million in Economic Impact
Premiere Orlando 2023
42,000 Attendees
$108 Million in Economic Impact
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