POST-SHOW EVALUATION

The show is finally over, you have provisionally held your space for next year’s event and you are now wondering how well it worked for you. There are a number of factors to consider when evaluating your success most of which should relate to your original objectives for attending in the first place. Review your objectives and establish how many new clients you made contact with, how many existing and how much business on the day? Then quantify and evaluate your leads; were they the right sort or value or from the target market? What about your physical presence; did you have enough space for all your staff? Were you swamped or could you manage with fewer stand personnel? What did your stand look like? Did you generate any press and media attention? Which parts of your pre-show promotion worked well and what was less successful? Can you maintain the PR momentum by reporting show successes or newsworthy items?

It is well worth asking your staff for their views and perceptions. How did they view the event? Did they think they were successful? What suggestions for improvements would they offer? Remember they will have most likely walked the floor and seen their competitors in action. Ask them what they think you could do next year to ensure they had an even better time? Were there any gimmicks or crowd stoppers that they saw? Could you do something creative and different for the next event? How well did your graphics convey your message? Did you have enough stock, materials and promotional giveaways?

It is also worth contacting the organiser and finding out whether the numbers were up or down on forecast. Was there an explanation for this and what will be the prediction for next year? It is by asking questions like these that you can ensure you continue getting the right return on your investment.