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Event ROI. No vanity metrics.
All-in event cost vs pipeline, closed-won and payback. The math that decides whether you sponsor next year.
Costs
Outcomes
Results
Total cost
$52,000
all-in
Cost per MQL
$825
63 MQLs
Pipeline
$226,800
12.6 opps
ROI
9%
closed-won / cost
Benchmark
Marginal
Pays back but barely. Either negotiate lower sponsor tier or generate more pipeline next time.
How it works.
Most events look great on lead-count and terrible on closed-won. Track all the way to revenue — and bake in 9-12 months for the deals to land.
FAQ.
How do I calculate event ROI?+
Pipeline generated ÷ all-in cost. Use closed-won at 12 months for true ROI; pipeline-influenced is the leading indicator. Don't forget travel, swag, lost sales-time and post-event nurture cost.
What's a good cost-per-MQL at events?+
B2B trade shows: $400-$1,200 per MQL. Industry-niche events run cheaper; mega-shows (Dreamforce, HubSpot Inbound) run more expensive but with higher fit.
When does event payback?+
B2B SaaS events typically break even at month 9-15 as influenced deals close. Anything claiming faster usually counts pipeline as revenue — don't.
Sponsor or attend?+
Attend first. Spend a year as an attendee in the same event before sponsoring — you'll see which booths actually pull traffic and which sponsor tiers are wasted.
Should I count brand value in event ROI?+
Yes, as a separate line — branded search lift, post-event organic mentions. Pure last-click ROI underestimates events because the brand halo is real.