At the second industry roundtable Circdata hosted in association with Exhibition News (EN), editor Annie Byrne probed organisers on their measures of success, and you can read the full article here from page 35 onwards. Plus, find out what some of the guests had to say in the roundtable video.

Eleven industry professionals from organisers large and small revealed their success stories – and their moments of panic – but they all agreed that the quality of visitors is the determining factor in whether a show has longevity. As Nineteen’s chief executive, Peter Jones, so aptly put it, “You stand in the middle of a show and you can hear it. A show’s like a beast; you can put your fingers on the heartbeat and you can feel it.”

Of course, without exhibitors there is no show, and organisers invest significant time and energy in preparing them so that they maximise their return on investment and convert their leads. Whilst organisers have been under pressure to promise a year-on-year increase in numbers to entice new exhibitors on-board, many are now moving towards investing budget into enhancing their net promoter scores.

Chris Clipston, technical director at Circdata, said: “What is the measure of a successful event?” was always going to get the industry talking, and this month’s EN roundtable didn’t disappoint! It was fascinating to get such insight into just how many elements add up to a successful event, and we wholeheartedly concur that at the end of the day – although in the events world it is more towards the beginning of the day – you can just “feel” it. You know it is a success or not once visitors flood the show floor, in the same way that we know as soon as the doors open if registration is going to be seamless. Thanks to EN for organising another insightful day!”