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Events as a
marketing tool

Why the most expensive channel in the marketing mix can be the most measurable one.

Reach has become cheap. Attention has not.

A digital contact means many contacts within seconds: anonymous, comparable at any time and effective on the crowd. Objections remain unspoken.

An event contact is the opposite: few contacts over several hours, personal and memorable. Objections are put on the table, and the effect unfolds directly with the decision-makers.

That is why an event is not a reach instrument but a depth instrument – and belongs at the end of the funnel, not at the beginning.

Four event types. Four tasks.

Each format serves exactly one task – and is measured against it alone.

  • 01 Visibility
    Trade shows, sponsoring, industry meet-ups. Goal: become known. KPI: qualified first contacts.
  • 02 Trust
    Expert forums, roundtables, workshops. Goal: demonstrate expertise. KPI: follow-up appointments booked.
  • 03 Decision
    Customer days, on-site and plant visits. Goal: remove doubts. KPI: close rate and time to close.
  • 04 Loyalty
    Customer parties, networking evenings, anniversaries. Goal: maintain the relationship. KPI: repeat business and referrals.

The most common mistake: one event that is supposed to fulfil all four tasks at once.

What guests remember

Good conversations, good food, good atmosphere. None of the three happens by accident.

  • Good conversations
    Who did I meet, what did we talk about? That becomes a relationship – and later an order.
  • Good food
    Quality you can taste is read as appreciation: for the guest and for the occasion.
  • Good atmosphere
    Space, light, acoustics, service, timing. The stage co-determines how a conversation goes.

The halo effect: guests infer the whole from one strong impression. Anyone who is hosted excellently will also consider your company excellent. It works both ways – lukewarm coffee costs competence. That is why food, service and atmosphere belong in sales and budget planning, not under “miscellaneous”.

What you can actually measure

Five key figures turn a budget line into a solid investment case:

  • Cost per qualified conversation
    Total cost divided by the number of genuine decision-maker conversations.
  • Pipeline contribution
    Proposal volume from event contacts within 90 days.
  • Time to close
    Customers with personal contact compared to customers without.
  • Return and repeat purchase rate
    The most honest quality indicator of an event.
  • Referrals and applications
    Employer branding counts towards the calculation.

The only thing that cannot be measured is what never had a goal in the first place.

Three mistakes that cost real money

These three mistakes cost nothing up front – only in the result.

  • The event without a goal
    “Let's do something again.” A budget without an expected value can neither be defended nor repeated.
  • The wrong guest list
    Everyone in the database gets invited – instead of the 40 people who decide on contracts.
  • No follow-up
    Business cards left in the jacket pocket. The contact cools down faster than the calendar allows.

Five rules of thumb

Follow these five rules and every event will deliver considerably more:

  • One event, one goal
    Everything else is a side effect.
  • Quality over quantity
    Better 40 of the right guests than 200 random ones.
  • Two thirds networking time
    Two thirds networking time, one third programme.
  • A reason to stay
    Every guest needs a reason to stay – and a reason to come back.
  • Follow-up first
    The follow-up process is in place before the first invitation goes out.

An event is the only channel in which your customer voluntarily gives you their time. The real question is what you do with it.

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+ 30
years of catering expertise
+ 9.000
successful events
100 %
fresh & regional preparation

How your event becomes a sales instrument

  1. 01
    Define the goal

    One task per event – visibility, trust, decision or loyalty.

  2. 02
    Sharpen the guest list

    Do not invite the database, invite the decision-makers who determine contracts.

  3. 03
    Build the stage

    Set space, service and cuisine so that conversations happen instead of a programme running.

  4. 04
    Follow up

    The follow-up process is defined before the first invitation – including owners and deadlines.

A selection of our dishes and impressions

Plan your next event with Lofthouse Catering

Over 9,000 successful events for leading companies in the Rhine-Main region.

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