Attendance Audits: Work on Standards Advances
By Margo McCall -- Tradeshow Week, 7/5/2004
Technology shows' initial rush to hop on the audit bandwagon may have subsided, but that doesn't mean interest in the subject has waned.
On the contrary, two separate groups continue to work on creating industry standards that, among other things, will define an attendance audit as well as suggest common criteria to help exhibitors gauge a show's quality.
The Task Force on Exhibition Industry Audit Best Practices and Standards was convened early this year by the Intl. Assn. for Exhibition Management. About the same time, MediaLive Intl., producer of COMDEX and other technology shows, established an Information Technology Event Measurement and Audit Council.
Exhibit Surveys President Skip Cox said the work of both groups is expected to culminate in sets of industry standards later this summer. "There's been a lot of interest and a lot of participation. Eventually it will all come together. There's been quite a bit of progress," he said.
Both groups use large industry gatherings for their meetings. The MediaLive group's first meeting was at COMDEX last November in Las Vegas, while the audit task force met at IAEM's Expo! Expo! in December, also in Las Vegas. The audit groups are scheduled to get together at next week's CEMA Summit in Park City, Utah.
That's fitting since CEMA — short for the Computer Event Marketing Assn. — provided the initial push to get the bandwagon rolling with its own audit task force. Under pressure from their bosses to prove events' ROI during tough economic times, members of the association rallied long and hard for show managers to provide independent attendance and demographic information.
Some shows, such as the Consumer Electronics Assn.'s Intl. CES, have for years provided exhibitors with detailed attendance information. But beginning last spring, managers of other high-tech shows joined in. Hannover Fairs USA opted to provide audited information for CeBIT America, an enterprise technology show launched at New York's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in June. IDG World Expo, producer of LinuxWorld Conference & Expo and the Macworld Conference & Expo, decided to have independent audits performed for all its shows. TechTarget, a producer of targeted technology events, reached the same conclusion. MediaLive Intl., which also produces NetWorld+ Interop, also embraced third-party audits for all its shows.
"The vast majority of the major IT tradeshows are now doing standardized audits, which is cause for celebration," said Marilyn Kroner, CEMA past president and chairwoman of the audit committee. "We've accomplished what we set out to. It's actually been beyond our imagination."
Cox said he too is surprised at show managers' strong support for audits. "What surprised me is how stringent the process is going to be. They're putting their money where their mouth is."
Kroner said that in order to work, the rules must be carefully balanced to serve both exhibitors' and show managers' needs. "We don't want to give show management so many rules that they're priced out of the market," she said.
Due to changes in the marketplace, show managers have been forced to do more to satisfy high-tech exhibitors. During the past few years, as revenue declines forced IT companies into cost-cutting mode, many cut tradeshow participation in favor of small, targeted tradeshows or their own corporate events. Some companies have stayed with those marketing choices, even though some areas of high tech are on the rebound.
Getting show managers to buy into measuring show results was the first step in making audits an accepted industry practice. But now exhibitor interest is picking up too, "which is very encouraging," said IAEM President Steven Hacker, who is a member of both groups. "Without their support in the process, it's questionable that much would happen."
Kroner said some exhibit managers already understand why independent audits are such a powerful evaluation tool. But, she added, "Exhibitors still need to be educated."
Cox said interest is highest among IT exhibitors and show producers, but added, "We're starting to see momentum building outside the IT space." He cautioned, however, that some sectors, such as medical shows, are unlikely to ever embrace attendance audits.
Hacker said the standards adopted this year are tailor-made for IT shows, and eventually he'd like to see standards established for other specific sectors too. "The idea is to use the draft model for technology as a point of departure for discussion with other industry segments. We may promulgate standards for up to 10 industry segments."
Hacker said the effort takes time because it represents "a major crossroads in the development of the industry." Audits were a topic of concern with IAEM members 12 years ago, but interest waned — at least until IT companies' recent strong focus on tradeshow ROI.
Each of the audit groups contains about a dozen members. The MediaLive group includes representatives from CEMA and IAEM; event marketer George P. Johnson; show managers Hannover Fairs USA, IDG World Expo, MediaLive and TechTarget; exhibitors Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft and Quantum; auditors BPA Intl. and Exhibit Surveys; and agency Carat Business & Technology. The IAEM task force is comprised of IAEM members and representatives from BPA Intl., Exhibit Surveys, eBrain Research and the Trade Show Exhibitors Assn.
Officials plan to present the proposed industry standards at IAEM's annual Expo! Expo! slated for San Antonio Dec. 1–3.
