9 Key Stats That Help The Future Of Your Marketing

The pressure that marketing teams are facing is coming from two sources: consumers and C-level executives.

They are constantly encouraged to keep pace with customer demands and deliver personalized customer experiences.

It is crucial to stay up-to-date with digital marketing statistics since it allows you to strengthen your marketing strategy.

We have compiled an in-depth list of marketing analytics statistics to help marketing teams keep track of key trends in the realm of customer experience and customer journey mapping, as well as how to consistently measure the impact of marketing efforts.

This information provides marketing teams with information that will help them improve their campaigns and better invest their time and resources.

To create this list, we looked into studies around:

1. Virtual event statistics

When pandemic-prompted lockdowns went into effect, six out of ten event professionals shifted gears to hosting virtual events instead.

Although in the fourth quarter of 2021, three-quarters of events on Bizzabo’s platform were virtual, only 30.6% of events in the second quarter of 2022 are planning to go virtual.

Although most event marketers believe that in-person experiences will never be replaced by virtual events, they still believe that virtual events have merit.

• 40% of events in 2022 will be virtual, based on a survey of 8,227 marketers (Statista, 2022)
• 71% of event decision makers say that it’s difficult to make virtual events accurately mimic the IRL experience, with 2 in 3 (67%) feeling it’s difficult to articulate a brand narrative through virtual events (BlueJeans and Forrester, 2021)
• The average number of sessions per virtual event is 12 (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 58% of virtual sessions are smaller, capping at 300 live attendees (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 14% of virtual event sessions are a larger keynote format (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 62% of virtual events are single-day events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 62.6% of event marketers work with a production services company to help execute virtual events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 93% of event professionals plan to invest in virtual events moving forward (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 80.2% of event organizers were able to reach a wider audience with virtual events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 54% of virtual event registrants convert to virtual attendees. (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 80% of event professionals report measuring event success based on attendee engagement and satisfaction (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 39.5% of event organizers found it easier to find outstanding speakers for virtual events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 80.2% of event organizers have been able to reach a wider audience with virtual events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 55% of respondents say customer relations, education, and retention are the main goals for their virtual events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 68% of event marketers reported that a hybrid solution that can manage both virtual and in-person events will play a key role in the 2020 and 2021 event strategies. (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 52.5% of event marketers are challenged by the logistics of virtual events and believe virtual events require a different set of skills and resources (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 68.8% of event marketers believe it’s more difficult to provide networking opportunities at a virtual event (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 80% of virtual event registrations are free (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 52.9% of event marketers believe it is more difficult to create unique and memorable experiences for virtual attendees in comparison to in-person events (Bizzabo, 2020)
• 61% of event professionals believe keeping virtual attendees engaged is their biggest challenge (Forrester, 2021)
• 13% of virtual attendees want to network with in-person attendees (Bizzabo, 2021)
• 42% of virtual attendees would attend online again, although they’d prefer to attend in-person (Bizzabo, 2021)
• 42% of virtual attendees would join online next time becasue it’s their best option (Bizzabo, 2021)
• 18% of virtual attendees don’t want to socialize at all (Bizzabo, 2021)
• 75% of virtual event participants found access to on-demand sessions most valuable (Forrester, 2021)

2. In-person event statistics

A mere 16.8% of events on Bizzabo’s platform were in-person in Q4 2021, indicating that the next wave of in-person events is just around the corner.

The following information compares the percentage of in-person events in 2022 to the percentage of in-person events in 2021. It is asking if the reader is prepared for the increase in in-person events.

• 35% of events in 2022 will be in-person, based on a survey of 8,227 marketers (Statista, 2022)
• 88% of respondents expect meetings in 2022 will have an in-person component (AMEX, 2021)
• 67% of event professionals believe in-person meetings will return to their pre-pandemic numbers within one to two years (AMEX, 2021)
• 81% of events expected to have an in-person element (AMEX, 2021)
• 78% of in-person attendees prefer to network with other in-person attendees (Bizzabo, 2021)
• 58% of virtual attendees are willing to network with anyone (Bizzabo, 2021)
• 85% of leadership (senior managers, executives, and board members) believe in-person events are essential to their company’s success (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 95% of marketers believe in-person events have a significant impact on achieving primary business goals (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 61% of marketers believe that in-person events are the most critical marketing channel — a 20% increase from the previous year (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 78% of event marketers believe that in-person events will become increasingly important to their company’s success (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 41.1% of event planners would only attend a physical event in-person if it was local (EventMB, 2020)
• 55% of event organizers report that safety is the biggest obstacle for resuming in-person events (EventMB, 2020)

3. B2B event industry statistics

Events are a great way to market your business and achieve your goals.

In 2021, event marketers reallocated their budgets to go online, which resulted in a successful year of virtual events ranging from VIP experiences to corporate events.

• 97% of B2B marketers believe that in-person events have a major impact on achieving business outcomes (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 87% of B2B marketers say in-person events are a critical component to their company’s success (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 82% of B2B marketers believe that attendee engagement is an important KPI for event success (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 94% of B2B event organizers use “pipeline generated” as their key success metric (Markletic)
• 65% of B2B marketers within the professional services industry host one-day conferences (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 54% of B2B marketers within the professional services industry host VIP events (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 51% of B2B marketers within the professional services industry host thought leadership events (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 72% of respondents project overall B2B marketing budgets will increase, stay the same, or only be cut moderately (by less than 20%) (Event Marketer, 2020)

4. Commercial and professional services event statistics

Commercial and professional service industries use events as an opportunity to connect with their target audience.

Whether the event’s goal is to increase brand awareness or to create an opportunity for networking, most event marketers believe that events are essential to their company’s success.

• 96% of respondents in the commercial and professional services industry believe events provide valuable opportunities for attendees to form in-person connections in an increasingly digital world (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 92% of respondents in the commercial and professional services industry agree leadership teams are very committed to their events strategy (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 86% of respondents in the commercial and professional services industry believe that in-person events are a critical component of their company’s success (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 72% of professional services companies expect a marketing budget increase for in-person events in the coming year (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 54% of event marketers in the professional services industry host events to drive brand awareness (Bizzabo, 2019)

5. Media event statistics

According to statistics, event software that integrates with other business software can produce more successful events.

• 97% of respondents within the media industry believe in-person events can have a major impact on achieving a company’s primary business goals (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 94% of respondents within the media industry believe event software makes it easier to achieve business outcomes (Bizzabo, 2019)
• 85% of respondents within the media industry reported that their leadership teams are supportive of their events strategy (Bizzabo, 2019)

6. Search marketing statistics

Search engines are a consistent fixture in our day-to-day lives. Here’s a few statistics to demonstrate the potential of marketing over search engines:

Organic search

• 85.4 percent of internet users search for information online at least once per month.
• Google processes more than 40,000 search queries every second on average. That’s over 3.5 billion searches every day!
• Google owns just under 92 percent of the global search engine market. The next biggest global search engines are Bing (2.75 percent) and Baidu (1.9 percent).
• More than 60 percent of Google searches originate from mobile devices
• DuckDuckGo, a privacy-centered search engine, saw traffic increase by 107 percent between October 2019 and October 2021.
• Bing processes 12 billion searches every month.
• 38 percent of US-based Bing users have a household income of more than $100,000.

Mobile search

• 92.3 percent of smartphone owners use their phone to search online.
• Research has estimated that 70 percent US paid search impressions and clicks occurred on mobile devices.
• Before buying in-store, 70 percent of smartphone owners use their device to conduct further research.

Online shopping

• 49 percent of product searches begin on Amazon, and 36 percent begin on Google.
• Google Shopping ads account for 76 percent of retail search ad spend, and 85.3 percent of all clicks.

Local SEO

• Online shoppers are 80 percent more likely to visit a brick-and-mortar store if they can check their inventory online.
• 88 percent of mobile users who search for a store on Google Maps visit a related store within a week.
• 28 percent of “nearby” or “near me” searches end in a purchase.

Voice search

• 72 percent of people with a voice-activated speaker (e.g. Alexa, Google Home) say that voice search has become a day-to-day activity.
• 27 percent of the global online population uses mobile voice search.
• Experts estimate that at least 50 percent of consumers will use voice search by 2022.

7. Customer experience statistics 

Modern consumers want brands to treat them as individuals. Marketing teams should therefore try to understand consumers on a personal level.

• 86 percent of consumers are willing to pay more for a better customer experience.
• Two-thirds of marketers say they largely compete on the basis of customer experience. 81 percent of marketers say they expect to be competing largely or entirely on the basis of customer experience in the next two years.
• Customer experience is becoming increasingly important for organizations. In 2017, about 20 percent of CX programs fell below customer expectations. In 2019, 96 percent of organizations met or exceeded consumer expectations.
• 3 out of 4 CX leaders (75 percent) note that they have seen a positive correlation between customer satisfaction and business objectives.
• Budgets are increasing for CX. In 2017, only 47 percent of survey respondents expected their budgets to increase for customer experience. In 2019, that number has risen to 74 percent.
• Consumers are inclined to switch brands to those that speak to their needs – with 52 percent stating they would switch brands if they were not getting custom messages and offerings.
• As many brands turn to automation to reach consumers in real-time, customer experience mapping and personalized content are considered the best ways to optimize automation initiatives.
• In the past year, there were 2.5 billion visits to Google Account pages to adjust ad personalization preferences.
• 38 percent of consumers state that they are more loyal now than they were two years ago – 57 percent say they would switch to a competitor if they provided a better experience.

8. Content marketing statistics

The internet has given consumers access to more content than ever before. Here are a few important statistics to keep in mind:

Strategy

• 86 percent of B2C marketers say content marketing is key to their strategy.
• 63 percent of businesses don’t have a documented content strategy.
• 72 percent of marketers say that content marketing increases engagement and leads.

Blogging

• 70 percent of organizations list blog content as one of the top 5 content channels.
• 41 percent of nurture campaigns feature thought leadership blog posts.

Video

• 82.8 percent of internet users view digital videos at least once per month.
• 31 percent of marketers use video messaging in nurture campaigns.
• Experts estimate that more than 1 million videos will be uploaded to the internet by 2022.

Podcasting and webinars

• 71.1 percent of internet users listen to digital audio content at least once per month.
• Webinars are used in 48 percent of nurture campaigns.

9. Data-driven marketing statistics

Marketing teams are turning to their stores of big data to make crucial campaigns decisions and reach consumers with personalized, people-based messaging. Consider the following:

• Data-driven marketing is a top priority for marketing leaders – 40 percent of organizations aim to increase data-driven marketing budgets, and 64 percent of marketing leaders report that data-driven strategies are vital in today’s economy. The top usages were:
  • • Customer journey mapping /analysis
    • A/B testing
    • Website personalization
    • Segmentation
• Two out of three marketers state data-based decisions to be more effective than gut instincts.
• Data-driven marketing increases ROI, with campaigns that leverage data-driven personalization reporting 5-8x ROI for their campaign spend.
• About 3 out of every 4 marketing leaders surveyed (76 percent) base decisions on data analytics.
• When surveyed, 32 percent of marketers identified marketing analytics and competitive insights as the most important factors in supporting their marketing strategies over the last 18 months. This ranked higher than any other category.
• Marketing analytics is the top investment for marketers, raking up 16 percent of their annual budgets.
• Although many organizations are realizing the value of marketing analytics, 37 percent of marketers say that proving their value is one of their top three biggest challenges.

Final thoughts 

We’re done with event marketing stats for now. We’re sure this year will bring new and interesting data, and we’ll keep this list updated with any relevant insights that come up during the year.