March 1999
Attendee surveys
Data about why attendees come to your show and how they use it can provide valuable insight for shaping future programming, adding new buyer segments and increasing booth sales. Find out everything you ever wanted to know about your attendees by using these tips and resources for conducting attendee surveys.
Tips from the expertsDon’t survey attendees using e-mail unless you are confident at least 70 percent of the addresses are working and valid.
A good response rate, one that will give your results credibility, is 20 percent. It may be necessary to approach attendees multiple times to get them to return a survey.
Consider hiring a third-party company to conduct the survey if credibility in the results is key. For example, if the data will be used for sales or if you’re seeking feedback about a problem area. Attendees are more honest with a third-party company whose feelings won’t be damaged by negative comments. If, however, you want general feedback on the show, using one of the many survey tools available is likely adequate.
If a survey is used to explain a problem at a show, such as why a certain segment of attendance has fallen off, conduct sample interviews first. They will either identify the problem, or make it easier to develop useful questions for a larger survey sample.
Richard Swandby,
CEO and Founder, Exhibit Surveys
If you survey attendees on the show floor, keep in mind your results are usually dependent on how outgoing the surveyor is when gathering results.
Gets the entire staff involved in the survey process. They will offer different insights into the kind of information that needs to be gathered. Sales staff, for example, can tell you what information would help them counteract objections, while operations staff may want feedback on move-out.
Begin with a benchmark survey that can serve as a backbone of comparison in future years. If the questions vary too much from year to year, the data isn’t valuable to show change.John Vasko, Group Marketing Director, Advanstar Art
and Beauty Group
Carol Nelson, Group Marketing Director, Sensors Expo & Conference
If you want to conduct a longer survey, prioritize the questions. After the first 10, offer the attendee a chance to move on, or answer the rest of the questions for an incentive.
Consider conducting pre-show surveys. It’s a way to remind attendees about the show, and determine whether they are coming. If they aren’t, it’s a chance to discover why. We do telephone pre-show surveys a week before the show.
Books•The Market Research Toolbox: A Concise Guide for Beginners, by Edward McQuarrie
Examines the goals and techniques of different types of marketing research.
•Market Research in the Internet Age: Leveraging the Internet for Market
Measurement and Consumer Insight, by Robert Monster
Provides case studies on how companies have used the Internet for market research.
•Hearing the Voice of the Market: Competitive Advantage Through Creative Use of Market Information, by Gerald Zaltman and Vincent Barabba
Explores techniques for analyzing research. ResourcesSurvey tools
Hosted Surveys www.hostedsurvey.com
Web-based survey software allows users to build their own Web surveys and send survey invitations to customers. Free 30-day trial available.
snap www.snapsurveys.com
A software program to design questionnaires, collect data and analyze results. Add-ons can be purchased for surveying on PDAs or telephone interviewing. Starts at $2,995.
ezsurvey www.raosoft.com
A windows-based program that allows users to create, publish, collect and analyze surveys. Packages start at $1,500.
SelectSurveyASP www.classapps.com
Allows users to add surveys to Web sites. Data can be exported to a CSV file or an Excel file. Single licenses are $99.
SySurvey www.sysurvey.com
A Web-based program that offers survey tools and data analysis. E-mail surveys are priced per e-mail sent, starting at 72 cents each from one to 499 e-mails.
SurveyGold www.surveygold.com
Windows software to use with surveys online, on the phone or on paper to analyze results. Individual licenses are $249.
Zoomerang www.zoomerang.com
An online subscription service that allows users to create online surveys, send invitations and compute results. Standard service is $599 annually.
Survey companies
Exhibit Surveys Inc. www.exhibitsurveys.com
Web site includes white papers on industry topics related to surveys and marketing.
Jacobs Jenner & Kent www.jjkresearch.com
Web site includes an online quiz to determine what you know about customers.
ShowIntell LLC www.showintell.com
An online RFP is available on the Web site.
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