In the world of event planning, intuition often plays a significant role. I have relied upon it before when launching or growing events. However, relying solely on gut feeling can be risky. Experience has shown that the odds of success are less, plus you may take extra time because wrong turns are more likely. Combining your innate intuition with data, analysis and differing opinions from advisors, your chances of making informed decisions and achieving greater success increase.
Data can confirm or challenge your initial instincts, providing a more objective perspective. For example, if you have a gut feeling that a certain marketing campaign will be successful, data can help you measure its actual impact and determine if your intuition is correct. The data can help you tailor incremental changes to improve results and if you hit the jackpot first-time and the data aligns with your intuition, it strengthens your confidence in your abilities.
Another example is that you feel there is still some space for virtual events in your market, despite the growing evidence of others in your organisation that they’ve had their day. Data and research, on length, time, format and opportunity would validate the when, where and how.
Data can often offer context for your gut decisions by highlighting trends, patterns, and correlations that might not be immediately apparent. By analysing data, not just from this year’s event but past and other sources you can better identify the underlying factors that influence your event's success or failure. This can help you make more informed decisions and avoid costly mistakes.
For example, consider that you’re outgrowing your venue and you’re not sure where to go next. By analysing data on attendee demographics, location, format preferences and networking needs you might discover that a different type of venue in a more centrally located venue would be more accessible to your target audience. This data can help you make a more informed decision about the new venue and exciting new features that increase your event's appeal.
Data can reveal hidden opportunities or challenges that you might have overlooked. For example, data analysis might show that a particular demographic is growing rapidly within your target market, suggesting a new opportunity for your event. By identifying these blind spots, you can take proactive steps to address them and capitalise on emerging trends.
For example, all events are made up of three main components. Sourcing, finding new products and services; learning about new trends, innovations and best practices; and networking with industry peers and suppliers to build business networks. By analysing data points and trends across these areas you might discover emerging dynamics in your market that enhance the attendee experience, and increase event value, and revenues. I worked on a very successful exhibition where the overriding component was sourcing. The event was 15 years old, growing 5-15% annually so there seemed little point in changing it. Through data and research, we identified that if we invested in and grew the learning element of the event, we could increase repeat attendance of the high-value audience from once every 3 years to 2 or less. This simple insight enabled us to double our revenues in 3 years.
Relying on data can help reduce the impact of personal biases in decision-making. This is particularly evident when you have a dominant team member, who crowds out other opinions; you need a different approach to a new market when geo-cloning a different format when launching as your bias and experience is an exhibition, conference or summit. By relying on objective data and research, you can make more rational and effective business choices that are less influenced by personal preferences or prejudices and more on facts.
In my early career, I launched an event for the premium incentive market. My bias and experience had me launch the idea in the exhibition format. Had I taken the time to consider independent opinion, data, and market dynamics, the event may still be around today. The exhibition ran for 2 years and then closed. The format was wrong. I still see this bias today in many organisations where a tried and tested format prevails and experimentation and adjustment is just not entertained.
By incorporating data-driven insights into your event planning process, you can make more informed decisions, optimise your strategies, and achieve greater success. Remember, the combination of intuition and data is a powerful tool for driving your event forward.