A Winning Solution: The Essentials of an ROI Formula for Event Planning
A Winning Solution: The Essentials of an ROI Formula #1
In the meeting and events industry, we know we must accurately collect, analyze, and act on data to improve event experiences. But how are we providing companies and event stakeholders with an accurate return on the event’s investment?
From strategically designing unique events to providing post-event surveys for attendees, the events industry has started to see results from mass personalization and obtaining feedback. But despite the industry’s growth, we haven’t reached the pinnacle — that every quality event must include business impact measures that depict event costs, participant reactions, and learning objectives that create change post-event.
Whether you’re the CEO, event coordinator, or a fellow event planner, the ROI Methodology can help you! Follow the next few blog posts as we explore a simplified guide to the Events ROI Methodology®, the gold standard in ROI formulas.
WHY THE ROI METHODOLOGY®
Some events professionals introduce the idea of ROI, but unless it follows the ROI Methodology®, they won’t have the backing of 40+ years of innovative ROI solutions. Starting in the 1970s, Dr. Jack Phillips started refining his methods until implementing them globally in the 1990s. Since then, he has continued to help companies and organizations build robust, lasting ROI systems.
This method has become the standard from an impact study with Lockheed-Martin in 1973 to multiple awards for workplace learning and human performance technology in the 2000s. Meetings and events are included in the many completed studies. Today, more than 14,000 people are involved in ROI Certification in more than 70 countries (Philips, 31).
By planning with these methods, you will see an increase in the impact of your events.
PLANNING FOR EVENT SUCCESS
Corporate event success can be evaluated by adding the net profits to the soft positives, such as increased initiative, brand awareness, and company loyalty — the options for analytics can get as creative as the marketing team wants! But Statista reported that in 2016, “The leading way to measure ROI was attendance numbers.* Just three years ago, with all the trends in event customization, the most helpful thing to track was still just heads in seats!
A paradigm shift must happen in today’s meetings and events. “The participant must learn something . . . use it in some productive way, and ultimately add value to the organization through his or her individual work (Philips, 24).”
This can happen when planners assess business needs, objects, performance, and partnerships with stakeholders during the planning and make the event perform for business impact. We must continue offering a better way of evaluating event success - concrete and grounded in ROI formulas. The team at the ROI Institute offers precisely that.
The pinnacles of this methodology are the V-model, 6 levels of data to plan for, and the 12 steps of planning, evaluation, and communication. Over the series of these blog posts, we will take a deeper look at how these items work together to give you and your team the ideal winning strategy for your next meeting or event.
IMPLEMENTING ROI METHODOLOGY®
When it comes to meetings and events, the sooner this method is implemented, the better. Due to the extent of the planning needed, getting your team to study and use this system today will bring a more cohesive feel to the event from start to finish. Knowing the measurable wins and communicating that to the top executives is a plus!
Iron Peacock Events exists to provide strategic event planning for business impact. Our company is thrilled to partner with the ROI Methodology® provided by Jack J. Phillips Ph.D. and the ROI Institute. Due to their innovation and exacting science that provides measurable results, we have spent the last two years refining our business model to align with this revered system. From start to finish, we help our clients create events that reflect these systems and deliver strategically planned and measurable results!
Stay tuned for the remainder of this blog series, including a closer look at the V-model, the 6 levels of data, the 12 steps of ROI, and implementing the ROI Methodology® formula for your own events.
Sources:
Philips, Jack J. “The Roi Methodology® in 12 Easy Steps.” ROI Institute, 2019, p. 31.
Philips, Jack J. et al. Return on Investment in Meeting and Events. Butterworth-Heinemann, 2008, p. 24.
