May 2006
Marketwatch: Nontraditional events
Corporate events for exhibitors and Webinars are the fastest-growing nontraditional events in 2006
By Danica Tormohlen

Twenty-one percent of show organizers are planning corporate events (including road shows, proprietary events, etc. that show organizers produce on behalf of exhibitors) in 2006, compared with 15 percent in 2005, according to the 119 show organizers who responded to an online survey conducted by EXPO Magazine and Exhibit Surveys Inc. in February 2006. Twenty percent of show organizers are planning Webinars, compared with 15 percent in 2005. The most popular nontraditional event in 2006: sponsorship-only, including conferences, summits, etc. with no booths (produced by 29 percent of respondents). Other popular nontraditional events: one-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers at shows (19 percent).

Are you producing more, less or about the same number as 2005 of these types of events?
One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers at your show 

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers held separately from your show 

Corporate events (road shows, proprietary events, etc. that you produce on behalf of exhibitors) 

Sponsorship-only (conferences, summits, etc. with no booths) 

Webinars 

Online trade shows 

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More on expoweb.com
Find exclusive Web-only content from this
survey, including:
• Revenue breakdown by event type

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers at your show 
    Sponsorships 52%
    Exhibit space 48%
    Registration fees 48%
    Advertising (show programs, etc.) 19%
    Online -- 0%
    Fee for services 19%
    Other 5%

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers held separately from your show 
    Sponsorships 75%
    Exhibit space 25%
    Registration fees 25%
    Advertising (show programs, etc.) -- 0%
    Online -- 0%
    Fee for services -- 0%
    Other 25%

Corporate events (Road shows, proprietary events, etc. that you produce on behalf of exhibitors) 
    Sponsorships 63%
    Exhibit space 53%
    Registration fees 42%
    Advertising (show programs, etc.) 42%
    Online -- 0%
    Fee for services 26%
    Other 5%

Sponsorship-only (Conferences, summits, etc. with no booths) 
    Sponsorships 93%
    Exhibit space 19%
    Registration fees 63%
    Advertising (show programs, etc.) 30%
    Online 4%
    Fee for services 11%
    Other 4%

Webinars 
    Sponsorships 50%
    Exhibit space 14%
    Registration fees 45%
    Advertising (show programs, etc.) 14%
    Online 18%
    Fee for services 14%
    Other 23%

Online trade shows 
    Sponsorships 80%
    Exhibit space 40%
    Registration fees 20%
    Advertising (show programs, etc.) 20%
    Online 40%
    Fee for services 20%
    Other -- 0%

• Nontraditional event trends for 2007
Will you be planning more, less or about the same number of nontraditional events in 2007, compared with 2006?

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers at your show 
    More 55%
    Same 41%
    Less 5%

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers held separately from your show 
    More 75%
    Same 25%
    Less -- 0%

Corporate events (Road shows, proprietary events, etc. that you produce on behalf of exhibitors) 
    More 55%
    Same 45%
    Less -- 0%

Sponsorship-only (Conferences, summits, etc. with no booths) 
    More 48%
    Same 52%
    Less -- 0%

Webinars 
    More 61%
    Same 39%
    Less -- 0%

Online trade shows 
    More 38%
    Same 63%
    Less -- 0%


• Attendee/vendor ratios by event type

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers at your show 
    Attendees 1281
    Vendors 68

One-on-one private meetings between buyers and sellers held separately from your show 
    Attendees 100
    Vendors 90

Corporate events (Road shows, proprietary events, etc. that you produce on behalf of exhibitors) 
    Attendees 1027
    Vendors 63

Sponsorship-only (Conferences, summits, etc. with no booths) 
    Attendees 726
    Vendors 35

Webinars 
    Attendees 215
    Vendors 3

Online trade shows 
    Attendees 550
    Vendors 47

• Verbatim responses on the most significant trends in the management or production of nontraditional events

Turning a live event into a tape or rewatchable/downloadable program to generate additional revenue
Additional income without endangering existing events
Competition from corporate-organized seminars
Connecting high-end buyers with targeted sellers
Doing more with less, Delivering value to the client while reducing overall cost
Event managers understanding what they are, what they mean to their event, and how to execute on it.
Filling a need that hasn't been met with traditional events
Getting the right appointment service
Growing but you must be carefull that it doesn't affect your other exhibitors in your traditional shows.
Helping corporations connect with our members while still maintaining their support of us financially
Integrating several opportunities (web, print, tradeshow) for clients. Making events more focused and delivering more applicable takeaways
Online trade shows for us because ours is every two years, it could be minmal for us to do one in the off year.  The problem would be getting attendees to login but if we could do it it would be a win win.
People want to do things without leaving their place of work.
Podcasts
Providing an enhanced ROI
Providing value attracting quality attendees and specific attendees running efficiently
Quantified return on investment
Sponsorship, using to enhance current properties
There's a growing need for smaller more intimate meetings between attendees and exhibitors in less traditional trade show settings.
They're being outsourced more.
They can be created/produced much more quickly/easily than "traditional" events.  You can rapidly respond to changes/breakthroughs in your particular industry segment.  I think the term "non-traditional" will also disappear.  These types of events are becoming the rule, not the exception.  They are another marketing tool that associations/organizations have to serve their members/vendors/clients.
Thinking out of the box is very hard for associations, and getting members to think of exhibitors and vendors as partners instead of cash cows. 
Timing is critical to Webnairs
Very resource intensive in terms of staff time and marketing expense for little return - as an association, we do these events more as a member benefit and for industry awareness than as a profit center
Webinars on timely issues will become more common

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EXPO Magazine has partnered with Exhibit Surveys Inc. to conduct the Marketwatch surveys and report the results. For more information about Exhibit Surveys, visit www.exhibitsurveys.com or call 800-224-3170.