In B2B marketing, there’s a phrase that gets tossed around a lot:
“You just can’t measure the value of this…”
Usually followed by:
“Our sales cycle is too long.”
“It’s just about brand exposure.”
“We’re not sure what it’s worth.”
But here’s my take: it’s not that we can’t measure it. We just get uncomfortable putting a number on it.
Let’s use trade shows as an example.
In a perfect world, you’re tracking onsite leads all the way through to recurring revenue and cost of acquisition. But that’s revenue generated which is not the same thing as activity value.
Revenue generated = Total sales tied to the activity
Activity value = The worth you assign to the activity itself
And while tracking revenue is getting easier (especially if your data plays nicely together), we all know it takes more than one touchpoint to make a sale. Which is why you still need to measure the activity value.
Assigning value is up to you—but it needs to happen.
Here’s one way:
Total trade show attendees × Estimated exposure × Value of brand exposure = Activity Value
Example:
10,000 attendees × 40% walk-by rate × $0.25 = $1,000
Is $0.25 arbitrary? Sure, a bit. But it can be based on whatever metrics really matter to your business.
Let's dive a little deeper into how you might calculate exposure value. After all, a thousand impressions from your exact target audience may be worth far more than ten thousand from a general crowd.
We can approach it somewhat like valuing PR coverage by line inches and the credibility of the publication. You can increase (or decrease) your value multiplier based on:
Industry relevance: Is this audience full of potential customers or just passersby?
Positioning: Are you showing up as a recognized expert, keynote speaker, or thought leader?
Engagement depth: Are attendees likely to have conversations, scan your QR code, or download your materials?
If you’re not sure where to start, ask:
How important is this market segment to our business?
How likely are these attendees to buy our products or services?
Are they decision-makers or influencers?
Does this activity put us in front of new audiences or deepen our reach in existing ones?
Your estimated exposure percentage doesn’t have to be static. You can tweak it based on:
Size of the conference: Larger events may dilute exposure unless your booth or activity is highly visible.
Audience type: Is it a niche, high-intent group or a broad, mixed audience?
Booth location: Prime spots with heavy foot traffic will naturally increase exposure.
By refining both your exposure percentage and your value-per-exposure figure, you create a more accurate picture of ROI and better data for deciding what’s worth doing again.
This approach works for more than trade shows:
Sponsorships
PR hits
Volunteer events
Industry presentations
Any marketing activity you’ve been avoiding valuing
Because if you can count it, you can value it. And when you value it, you can decide whether to keep doing it.
So… what’s your formula for measuring the unmeasurable?