The bad news: Exhibit Surveys found that the ratio of attendees to exhibitors continued to fall, despite a 4.5 percent increase in trade show attendance industry-wide in 2000 reported in the Veronis Suhler & Associates Communications Industry Forecast, to be released mid-July. Last year, the average traffic density score* (which measures the number of attendees occupying every 100 square feet of exhibit space) on exhibition floors fell to 2.2 from 2.5 in 1999. 

The report – compiled using attendee surveys from 57 trade shows in such varied industries as medicine, communications and manufacturing – provides statistical data on the buying power of attendees at trade shows. It also tracks the quality of attendees, as well as their activity at shows. Show managers may use the data to benchmark their events and identify potential problem areas. 
Audience quality

While crowded aisles may make the show seem successful to exhibitors, they’re even more impressed when they can connect with a lead-rich audience. And that’s what exhibitors are still finding, according to the Exhibit Surveys report. 

“Although averages may be up or down a percentage point or two, none of the changes are statistically significant enough to indicate a change in the trends,” says Ian Sequeira, Vice President of Exhibit Surveys, about the quality of audiences on show floors. In 2000, 56 percent of attendees reported plans to make purchases in the next year, continuing a slow fall from a high of 63 percent in 1996. 

The sharpest fall in buying plans came from the computer industry, from 63 percent in 1999 to 56 percent in 2000, while the largest increase was in computers, which jumped to 51 percent from 44 percent in 1999. Sequeira says the 1999 numbers in the computer category were higher to reflect buying in preparation for the Y2K scare. While the percentage of attendees with the ability to make buying decisions didn’t change overall, computer shows saw the largest drop, from 88 percent in 1999 to 82 percent in 2000. Communications industry shows saw the largest gain, from 72 percent in 1999 to 78 percent in 2000. And the number of attendees with final say over purchases rose slightly overall, from 37 percent in 1999 to 38 percent in 2000.

Audience activity
The number of new prospects for exhibitors (those who hadn’t been called on by a salesperson from an exhibiting company in the past 12 months) also remained the same from 1999 to 2000 — 88 percent. This factor has remained relatively stable over the past six years, reaching a high of 89 percent in 1996. 
The trend of people traveling greater distances to attend shows also continued in 2000. Last year, 52 percent of attendees traveled more than 400 miles to visit the shows surveyed, compared with 48 percent in 1999. In addition, attendees within a 200-mile radius of the show fell to 32 percent from 37 percent in 1999. 

Because attendees are coming from greater distances, the hours spent at exhibits is up 4 percent. “If you’ve come from farther away, you’re more likely to stay longer and visit more exhibits,” Sequeira explains. However, this doesn’t mean attendees are spending more days at the show. Instead, attendees spent an average of 2.1 days at a show in 2000, the same as in 1999. Manufacturing shows, however, saw an increase in this number, from 1.8 in 1999 to 2.1 in 2000. 

On average, the number of attendees who don’t attend any other show fell 3 percent, from 54 percent in 1999 to 51 percent in 2000. Medical and manufacturing shows have the highest number of attendees who don’t attend other shows at 55 percent, although for medical shows, the number is a drop from 63 percent 
in 1999. 

Attendee loyalty and the ability to draw new attendees is holding steady. The number of repeat attendees fell only slightly, from 44 percent in 1999 to 43 percent in 2000. The average of first-time attendees remained the same from 1999 to 2000 at 35 percent.