Survey on Trade Show Reality in Manufacturing Industry: Approximately 80% Struggle with Performance Measurement

Marketing Rise, provider of the proprietary B2B manufacturing marketing automation tool 'MRC,' conducted a survey in April 2026 regarding trade show participation from April 2025 to March 2026.

## Survey Summary
- Effectiveness measurement: 80% face challenges, with only 20% measuring clearly; long evaluation cycles and resource shortages are key factors.
- Lead management: Excel remains the dominant tool, with manual, individual follow-ups being the standard.
- Success factors: Rapid and accurate workflows from initial inquiry to individual follow-up.

## 80% Struggle with Effectiveness Measurement
Regarding measuring the ROI of trade shows (including online), only 18.9% of firms set clear KPIs. Meanwhile, 50.6% said they use vague indicators, and 29.3% do not measure at all, leaving 80% in an ambiguous state. Major KPIs focus on lead counts (71.9%) and requests for quotes/appointments (70.2%), while only 15.8% track final sales conversion.

Key reasons for the lack of measurement include: 'Decision periods are too long to link to trade shows' (52.1%), 'Lack of time/personnel' (33.3%), and 'Lack of measurement methodology' (31.3%).

## Limitations in Lead Management
Excel is the primary list management tool for 53.7% of companies, with 28.7% using it exclusively. Follow-ups rely heavily on manual efforts: emails (86.6%), phone calls (64.6%), and visits (54.3%). The survey highlights that this manual labor leads to resource depletion, forcing firms to abandon follow-ups. Breaking away from these traditional styles through MA-integrated automation is the key to resolution.