Before the Expo; Plan, Calculating your ROI | Exhibitor training 4 of 36

Getting a return on investment from an expo is doesn't just mean generating leads and converting them. To get a real understanding of ROI, you need first to work out your costs. This includes the costs of the stand space as well as the display stand, merchandise, literature, give-aways, staff time, travel costs, accommodation, subsistence and much more. Spending time understanding the actual costs will help you determine the profit you need to generate in order to see a positive return. In turn, this will allow you to examine your average lead conversion success rate and determine how many enquiries you are likely to need from the show in order to generate the necessary ROI.

‘ROI is not sales revenue. To generate ROI it’s important to understand what it is’.

What Do I Need To Do To Work Out My ROI?

To help you calculate your return on investment, we have set out a worksheet on the following page. Here is a step by step guide to using it.

Step 1 – Calculate The Investment

Put the cost of the stand in the worksheet Add all the costs that will be incurred as a result of the expo Examples of costs have been shown. Add any others as necessary - e.g. flights, accommodation, hiring of furniture etc. Now add it all together and place it in the bottom of the lefthand column under the heading of ‘Total Investment’. This will be known as (A).

Step 2 – The Return, Part One: Average Value Of 1 Order

Focus on an average order value based on the product or service you will be promoting at the expo. We will call this (B). Now put the Net Profit you expect to generate from that single order. We will call this (C). Now work out the Break-Even Point to get (D). This equals Total Investment (A) divided by Net Profit for a sales order (C). In effect, this gives you the minimum number of sales you need.

Step 3 – Return, Part Two: Lead Conversion Ratio

Estimate how many leads you typically need to generate 1 order. We will call this (E). Now work out how many leads will be required to break even. (= D X E.) Finally, add the number of leads you will need to generate 1 extra order.

Step 4 – No Of Leads Required To Generate The ROI

o This will be the minimum target for you and your team

In Our Next Presentation...

In our next presentation, we’ll be looking at the second of the Six Ps: People. Achieving an ROI from exhibiting depends enormously on the preparedness and the attitude of your team. Training plays a big part in this, so we'll be considering the steps you can take to give your people the best possible chance of success.

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