Understanding how resource deployment strategies influence trade show organizers’ performance effectiveness

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine how the deployment of market-based resources influence trade show (TS) organizers’ performance effectiveness as measured with exhibitor and visitor attendance levels. To this end, the study synthesizes several market-based resources including TS longevity, TS webpage interactivity, industry association support, exhibition duration and exhibition area, and investigates how their deployments affect TS attendance levels. Design/methodology/approach – A cross-sectional dataset was compiled on 79 TSs by searching a variety of online sources. Organizers’ performance effectiveness was measured using TS attendance levels. The extent to which organizers deployed market-based resources was likewise quantified using hard data. A series of regression models was estimated to isolate the effect of the market-based resources on TS attendance levels. Findings – The results demonstrate the existence of positive relationships between market-based resources and TS attendance levels which are characterized by diminishing returns. More specifically, the authors found that as the amount of the deployment of the market-based resources increases, their incremental contributions to TS attendance levels become smaller. Practical implications – The findings offer comprehensive managerial insights about how organizers can improve their attendance levels by carefully deploying market-based resources. Originality/value – The few available works that try to address the question of why some TSs are well attended while others are not rely on the opinions of exhibitors and visitors. This study attempts to address the same question from the organizers perspective, and, in so doing, it contributes to the spares literature on TS management from the organizers perspective.