Last week’s Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) webinar, Where Is the B2B Exhibition Industry Now? What is the Outlook? How to Plan When the Business Environment Keeps Changing!, brought together industry experts Adam Sacks, President of Tourism Economics, and Nancy Drapeau, IPC, CEIR’s Vice President of Research, to deliver crucial insights for exhibition professionals navigating today’s complex economic landscape.
The data presented paints a challenging picture for the exhibition industry: attendance in Q1 2025 has dropped 8.9% compared to pre-pandemic levels, with only 5 of 15 tracked industry sectors exceeding their pre-pandemic performance. This reflects broader economic uncertainties, as the CEIR Total Index forecast now indicates a slower recovery trajectory than previously projected.
As Adam Sacks noted during the presentation, some of the data had been updated the night before the webinar since timing is critical in an environment where economic sentiment, inflation metrics and tariff impacts shift weekly, sometimes daily.
Despite seeing some positive economic indicators including real income growth, tax cut extensions and healthy corporate balance sheets, consumer confidence remains near historic lows. Exhibition organizers are contending with mounting pressure from rising tariffs, persistent inflation concerns, increasing unemployment and ongoing supply chain disruptions.
So, what can exhibition organizers do in this challenging environment? The experts recommend three key strategies:
- Focus on core U.S. markets that align closely with your event’s value proposition
- Explore adjacent market segments with potential crossover value or unmet demand
- Position your event as the sector’s convening hub where industry members can collaboratively address challenges
One of the webinar’s most compelling revelations was that simply tracking key performance indicators strongly correlates with better overall performance. Exhibition organizers who measure Net Promoter Score (NPS) from both exhibitors and attendees, monitor retention rates across all participant groups, and track new acquisition metrics consistently outperform their peers, even before implementing improvement strategies.
As Nancy Drapeau emphasized during the session, “Tracking performance outcomes isn’t just good practice, it measurably improves strategic planning and event results.”
The data revealed several important insights about performance tracking:
- Events that track NPS consistently report better profitability, booth sales, attendance, and rebooking rates
- Even when the NPS scores themselves aren’t particularly high, organizers who track this metric outperform peers across multiple indicators
- Tracking exhibitor retention has been directly linked to higher floor growth across events of all sizes
The message is clear: in uncertain times, data clarity provides a competitive edge.
For exhibitions and events professionals seeking additional insights, the new CEIR Index Dashboard offers real-time industry benchmarks. Click on the video below for a quick preview of the invaluable data available through the dashboard that can be used to strategically navigate today’s highly fluid marketplace:
In June, CEIR will launch its Performance Benchmarking Playbook Series, which will also provide detailed analytics on financials, staffing, exhibitor outcomes and attendee engagement metrics.
Tap into more CEIR research here, and for questions about implementing KPI tracking or applying industry data to your specific event, contact Nancy Drapeau at ndrapeau@ceir.org.
