Determining the success of your event is a lucrative task. It can also be a little difficult when success is such a relative term. Thankfully, there are proven ways to help you work out if you had a modicum of success by looking at data, social media and talking to your attendees. So here’s a step by step process in which you can measure how successful your event was.

1. Work out what you want to achieve

Do you want to make a certain amount of money? Do you want to have a certain amount of tickets sold? Did you need to have a particular number of sign-ups to a newsletter or a certain number of products sold? Once you determine this you can measure the end result against your anticipated numbers.

2. Make the most of event apps

Consider using an event app like Whova which can help you with marketing the event and creating reports with the data you’ll later use by organising live polling, a social media wall and checking in attendees. The app can even generate name badges and help you connect with the people attending your event prior and post event.

3. Monitor social media activity

Monitoring social media activity before, during and after the event will help you work out how many people you are reaching. During the event you can monitor guest interaction by looking at who is posting about their favourite part of the event and using the event #hashtag. Post-event look at who has given you a shout out.

4. Look at your audience participation

Look at your audience participation. Who is interacting with the live poll? Is there a long line up at the photobooth? Are there a fair few posting on the social wall? Consider working out the number of attendees versus how many people used the photo booth/how many printouts were done up.

5. Evaluate the costs

Consider working out the difference between the anticipated costs and revenue against the actual costs and revenue made. Did you hit your targets? Revenue isn’t always a great measure of success but perhaps during this process you can look at where you spent your money and if it was worth it. If no one used the photobooth perhaps it’s time to ditch it until the right event calls for one.

6. Check the data

How many people did you invite? How many people RSVP’d? How many people actually attended? And how many signed up to your service or newsletter or purchased your product? Check the data against each other to see if it matches up.

7. Post event surveys

Send out post-event surveys with a site like Survey Monkey so you can gain a better idea of what worked and what didn’t. From there you can improve by implementing these changes for your next event. Make sure you add in response boxes with open questions to give your attendees a chance to explain their answers.

8. Look ahead

How many people are already showing interest in your next event? This isn’t a precise way of evaluating the success of your event but it does show guest loyalty and proves you did something right.

9. Ask your sponsors

How pleased are your sponsors? Did you deliver on your promise to them? Will they be sponsoring the next event?

10. Evaluate logistic effectiveness

Looking at logistics of the event; did everything run on time? Were the doors open at the start time? Did the food come out when it was supposed to? Did speakers come on at the right time? Was everyone gone by the predetermined finishing time? Was the venue cleaned and keys handed in by the promised time? And was the venue happy with the state of their room?

Hopefully there were some interesting points for your to consider in planning your next event and determining its success.

Need help planning your event?
Click here to contact us!