Staging and Gauging

When it comes to event programs, chief marketing executives seem to be of two minds. On the one hand, they say events are a vital part of overall marketing plans, but on the other, there’s a big question mark when it comes to using them as a strategic marketing vehicle. Those are just some of the details from a study fielded by the CMO Council and the Computer Event Marketing Association (CEMA). Entitled “Staging & Gauging: Do Events Pay Off?” the study examined the role, value and effectiveness of event marketing from both the CMO and event manager points of view.

The survey confirmed that events are high up on marketers’ lists: Despite a drop-off in events after the tragedy of 9/11 and the subsequent slowdown, event marketing has rebounded significantly. However, less than half of the CMOs polled said they are “very committed” to centrally managing and using events as a strategic marketing vehicle. Even more telling, only 33 percent of event managers feel their CMOs are “very committed” to events. Asked how integrated their events are with other marketing functions, just 36 percent of CMOs claim they are “tightly integrated.”

Staging & Gauging consisted of a quantitative survey of nearly 450 top marketers and event managers. An informative Webinar, featuring event marketing experts from companies such as BearingPoint, Cognos, Symantec and Xerox, attracted close to 400 registrants. Download report »