Key Insights
Essential data points from our research
91% of consumers report they have more positive feelings about a brand after joining events and experiences
98% of consumers feel more inclined to purchase the product after attending an activation
74% of event attendees say that they have a more positive opinion about the company, brand, product or service being promoted after the event
85% of consumers are likely to purchase after participating in events and experiences
75% of B2B marketers say that in-person events are the most effective marketing tactic
65% of brands say that their event and experiential programs are directly related to sales
84% of leadership (VPs and C-Suite) believe in-person events are a critical component of their company’s success
Companies seeing 5-10x growth are 24% more likely to increase their event marketing budgets
77% of marketers use experiential marketing as a vital part of a brand’s advertising strategy
98% of users create digital or social content at events and branded experiences
100% of consumers share the content they create at events on social media
71% of consumers share a photo or video via social media to share their experience at a branded event
93% of event marketers plan to invest in virtual events moving forward
80% of event organizers plan to invest in hybrid events in the future
Generative AI utilization in event marketing is expected to grow by 53% over the next two years
Budgeting & Executive Strategy
- 184% of leadership (VPs and C-Suite) believe in-person events are a critical component of their company’s success
- 2Companies seeing 5-10x growth are 24% more likely to increase their event marketing budgets
- 377% of marketers use experiential marketing as a vital part of a brand’s advertising strategy
- 487% of marketers invest in experiential marketing to effectively reach their target audience
- 580% of marketers believe live events are critical to their company’s success
- 630% of marketers plan to increase their budget for experiential marketing in the upcoming year
- 762% of senior marketers plan to invest more in live events in the future both in budget and number of events
- 881% of marketers believe that live events will become increasingly important to their organization’s success
- 930% of event budgets are allocated to venue rental on average
- 10Marketing budgets for experiential events are expected to rise by 6.1% in the next 12 months
- 1170% of marketers say that the need to validate results from experiential marketing is increasing
- 1230% of marketers say their biggest challenge is securing budget for experiential campaigns
- 1325% of B2B marketing budgets are spent on events
- 1487% of C-suite executives believe in the power of live events and plan to invest more in them
- 1579% of brands say they will execute more corporate events and trade shows this year than last
- 1639% of marketers say proving ROI is the most difficult aspect of experiential marketing
- 1733% of B2B marketers estimate that 21% or more of their total marketing budget goes to events
- 1822% of brands spend over 50% of their marketing budget on experiential marketing
- 1950% of event marketers plan to increase their investment in event technology
- 2067% of event organizers say that finding the right venue is the most expensive part of the budget
Interpretation
Executives and marketers are basically voting with their budgets: roughly 84 to 87 percent of leadership and 77 to 81 percent of marketers say live events are mission-critical, fast-growing companies are 24 percent more likely to pour money into events, many brands plan bigger experiential budgets and more event tech while allocating anywhere from about a quarter to over half of marketing spend to events, yet venue rental eats roughly 30 percent of event budgets and two thirds call venue sourcing the priciest line item, 30 percent struggle to secure funding and up to 70 percent demand clearer ROI—so the winners will be the teams that invest boldly and measure relentlessly.
Consumer Sentiment & Behavior
- 191% of consumers report they have more positive feelings about a brand after joining events and experiences
- 298% of consumers feel more inclined to purchase the product after attending an activation
- 374% of event attendees say that they have a more positive opinion about the company, brand, product or service being promoted after the event
- 440% of consumers say they felt more loyal to the brand after attending an event
- 596% of consumers are more likely to buy a product after trying it
- 680% of attendees said that live demonstrations and free samples significantly help define their purchasing decision
- 795% of marketers agree that live events provide attendees with a valuable opportunity to form in-person connections in an increasingly digital world
- 875% of consumers say they feel more connected to a brand after an in-person event
- 976% of millennials would choose to spend money on an experience rather than a material item
- 1069% of millennials believe attending live events makes them feel more connected to other people, the community, and the world
- 1149% of marketers say that audience engagement is the biggest contributing factor to having a successful event
- 1265% of consumers say that live events help them understand a product better than a commercial
- 1360% of consumers are likely to sign up for a loyalty program at a live event
- 1455% of consumers say that a bad experience at a live event would make them stop buying from a brand
- 1570% of Gen Z consumers prefer brands that conduct sustainable and ethical events
- 1685% of consumers say that being able to ask questions in real-time is a key benefit of live events
- 1757% of consumers feel that brands utilizing VR/AR are more innovative
- 1889% of attendees say that networking is the primary reason they attend business events
- 1978% of consumers say that receiving a branded giveaway makes them remember the brand longer
Interpretation
Brands that stop broadcasting and start hosting real-world experiences convert positive feelings into purchases and loyalty, because hands-on demos, samples, networking, giveaways and immersive tech make products understandable and memorable, millennials and Gen Z reward sustainable, community-focused activations, and one bad event can wipe out all the goodwill.
Content & Social Amplification
- 198% of users create digital or social content at events and branded experiences
- 2100% of consumers share the content they create at events on social media
- 371% of consumers share a photo or video via social media to share their experience at a branded event
- 466% of marketers say that experiential marketing is the most successful tactic for driving positive word of mouth
- 534% of consumers would make a post about an experience on their social media pages
- 672% of consumers say friends’ posts about branded experiences make them more likely to purchase from that brand
- 767% of B2B marketers utilize in-person events for content marketing material
- 885% of event marketers use email marketing software to promote their events
- 938% of attendees visit the company’s website after attending a branded event
- 1064% of consumers use hashtags when sharing their event experiences online
- 1189% of marketers use social media to engage attendees before the event
- 1254% of consumers share pictures of events because they want to show off where they are
- 1350% of attendees say they share content from events to keep their social media feeds active
- 1477% of content shared from events reaches an audience beyond the initial attendee list
- 1543% of prospective customers interact with a brand online after attending an event
- 1693% of marketers utilize social media influencers to promote their experiential events
- 1744% of marketers measure the success of an event based on social media mentions
- 1886% of marketers use video clips from events for post-event marketing
- 1960% of smartphone users use their devices to look up information about a brand while at an event
- 2081% of marketers use user-generated content (UGC) from events in their paid advertising
- 2151% of marketers use unexpected locations or "pop-ups" to drive buzz
Interpretation
Live events have become marketing's viral factory, with almost every attendee creating and sharing moments that extend beyond the room, sway purchases, and supply the user-generated fuel savvy brands amplify with influencers, email, video and paid ads to turn real-world buzz into measurable returns.
Future Trends & Technology
- 193% of event marketers plan to invest in virtual events moving forward
- 280% of event organizers plan to invest in hybrid events in the future
- 3Generative AI utilization in event marketing is expected to grow by 53% over the next two years
- 461% of marketers agree that sustainability will be a key focus for future events
- 559% of event marketers are using facial recognition technology to track attendee engagement
- 682% of corporate event planners are prioritizing data collection in their future strategy
- 760% of marketers say that personalization is crucial for the success of experiential events
- 890% of event marketers believe that technology can help curate a better attendee experience
- 986% of event marketers believe that technology creates major opportunities for improving efficacy of events
- 10Virtual reality (VR) in the events market is projected to reach $59 billion by 2029
- 1183% of brands are using gamification in their experiential strategy to increase engagement
- 1291% of event organizers say that mobile apps are relevant to their events for content delivery
- 1388% of companies use their event data to inform future marketing campaigns
- 14Live streaming of events has increased by 300% in popularity over the last three years
- 1566% of event professionals say that pre-recorded video content is used in their hybrid events
- 1640% of event apps are used for networking purposes among attendees
- 1748% of attendees download the event app to access the agenda
- 1872% of event professionals say that data security is a top concern for future tech integration
- 1994% of global events include some form of sustainability initiative
- 2042% of marketers report that their event strategy is fully integrated with their digital strategy
Interpretation
These statistics show experiential marketing morphing into a tech driven, sustainability minded and hyper personalized arena where virtual and hybrid formats, AI, VR, gamification and mobile apps promise richer engagement but pervasive data collection, facial recognition and security concerns, coupled with only partial digital integration, could turn innovation into a privacy and strategy headache unless planners act deliberately.
ROI & Business Impact
- 185% of consumers are likely to purchase after participating in events and experiences
- 275% of B2B marketers say that in-person events are the most effective marketing tactic
- 365% of brands say that their event and experiential programs are directly related to sales
- 470% of users become regular customers after an experiential marketing event
- 579% of U.S. marketers generate sales using event marketing
- 653% of marketers say that in-person events are the best way to deepen relationships with subscribers and customers
- 763% of marketers use trade shows, conferences and events for lead generation
- 852% of respondents say event marketing drives more business value than other marketing channels
- 948% of brands realize an ROI of 300% to 500% with their events and experiences
- 1058% of marketers believe that experiential marketing increases customer advocacy
- 1176% of marketers say that event marketing is their single most effective channel
- 1232% of attendees subscribe to an email newsletter after an experiential activation
- 1341% of marketers consider event marketing to be the single most effective channel for driving conversions
- 1445% of event marketers perform a post-event survey to measure success
- 15Brands that use experiential marketing see a 14% increase in brand awareness
- 1668% of B2B marketers use in-person events for lead conversion specifically
- 1773% of B2B marketers say that events are better than other tactics for generating high-quality leads
- 1890% of marketers say that experiential marketing provides better engagement metrics than digital advertising
- 1918% of marketers say using influencers at events significantly lowers their cost per acquisition
- 2056% of marketers use the number of sales qualified leads (SQLs) to calculate event ROI
Interpretation
Put bluntly, experiential marketing isn't a fad but a conversion engine—about 85% of attendees are likely to buy, roughly 70% become regular customers, most marketers call in-person events their single most effective channel, many report three to five times ROI, and overall live experiences deliver better engagement, higher-quality leads, and deeper relationships than other tactics, turning attendees into buyers and customers into advocates.
