Measuring the effectiveness of marketing effort in the convention industry: A customer equity approach

Abstract

Scope and Method of Study: The purpose of this study was to develop the Convention Decision-Making Process Model by including show managers as another stakeholder, investigate the drivers of customer equity in the convention industry, evaluate the importance of each driver of customer equity (value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity) for show managers, and study the effectiveness of practitioners' marketing efforts on the customer equity of the convention center. After a thorough literature review, in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with show managers and attendees to identify primary decisions before, during and after a convention experience. Qualitative interviews with show managers confirmed the drivers of customer equity in the convention industry. A quantitative analysis was used to determine key drivers of customer equity and their impact on marketing effort.

Findings and Conclusions: The output showed important decisions made by attendees before attending a convention, during the convention, and after their convention experience. Attendee's decisions include: logistical issues, price and cost of being way from regular duties, what sessions to attend, who to network with and what can be implemented once the convention is complete. Show manager's decisions include: location decisions, availability, safety and security concerns, and evaluation criteria.

The sub-drivers revealed in the interviews were quality, price, location, reputation, awareness, personal connections, responsiveness, and special treatment. The results from logistical regression showed value equity to be the most important type of customer equity to show managers. The results applying a customer equity approach to projected marketing efforts revealed value equity as the most influential in improving customer equity.