Live events are a proven tactic to capture the expressed interests of event attendees. At Cvent CONNECT, Cvent’s Mike Dietrich and PwC’s Kevin Borwick outlined the data needed to prove event ROI and driver smarter business decisions.
Event Measurement is Elusive
Many companies understand how to measure the performance of their digital channels. Gauging the impact of live events is more challenging. There is often agreement around the desire to integrate live event data with digital touch points, but few organizations know how to prove event ROI. Key event activities to track include: attendee check-in, session poll responses, session attendance, session feedback, one-on-one appointment conversations, exhibitor booth visits, product demos, and post-event surveys.
PwC: Prove Event ROI
PwC looked to prove event ROI and gain business insights. The firm runs thousands of events annually, but lacked a consistent management process. This led to missing or inconsistent event data. Working with Cvent, PwC integrated Cvent with their marketing automation system to capture event data. Kevin and his team developed a three-tiered methodology built on Process, People and Technology to achieve their goals.
Process
The first step was to create a solution that was simple, repeatable, and focused on the customer experience. PwC emphasized creating internal alignment within the organization, using the firm’s expertise in change management and training. Events were chose to pilot, test, and assess thew new process prior to a larger roll-out. Presently, PwC has achieved 80 percent compliance across all events.
People
Identifying all stakeholders was imperative to achieving large-scale compliance. Various teams offered suggestions and feedback on the pilots to help develop the master plan. The firm’s change management and communications experts assisted to ensure they included and all staff understood the value of data collection.
Technology
The final step involved aligning technology systems to capture the right data. PwC implemented Cvent OnArrival to digitally capture all event attendees. They then integrated Cvent’s Event Management Platform with their marketing automation system, Eloqua, and their CRM system, Salesforce.
Quantifiable Business Impact
By following this process, PwC realized these business improvements to prove event ROI:
- Improved customer experience across live events
- Better and more targeted campaign follow-up
- Enhanced event tracking to monitor leads and close revenue deals
- Delivery of real-time event data and actionable analytics to CRM
The complete CONNECT session of How to Use Cvent Event & Conference management software to Measure and Prove Your Event ROI is available at here.
