PITTSBURGH — While predictive analytics has been around for decades, for the trade show industry, it’s a technology whose time has come. More and more shows are turning to predictive analytics to ensure the health and safety of their attendees, which increases attendance and boosts their bottom line.
What is predictive analytics? Predictive analytics is the use of data, statistical algorithms, and machine learning techniques to identify the likelihood of future outcomes based on historical data. The goal is to go beyond simply knowing what has happened to provide a better assessment of what will happen in the future.
Why now? With the widespread availability of interactive, easy-to-use software, predictive analytics is no longer the domain of mathematicians and statisticians alone. Business analysts and industry experts are also using these technologies, including trade show organizers.
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Epistemix Inc.., a Pittsburgh-based company spun out of the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health that does agent-based modeling, uses predictive analytics to track outbreaks at trade shows. Epistemix simulates the interactions of millions of imaginary people who are statistically similar to the real U.S. population, taking into account their demographics and where they live, work, or go to school.
In a recent webinar, Using predictive analytics for health and safety measuresorganized by the Exhibition Research Center (CARS), John Cordier, CEO of Epistimex, demonstrated through case studies how trade show managers are using predictive analytics to leverage specific health risk data to ensure the safety of exhibitors and attendees and plan for increases or decreases in revenue or attendance.
It’s not just about tracking COVID, Cordier says. “Predictive analytics is based on behavioral forecasts that include a particular organization’s safety protocols, human behavior, and how the outbreak is evolving,” Cordier says. “But you also have to consider how the number of attendees and potential exhibitors is changing. You have to quantify how many people are getting vaccinated, how many are continuing to get boosters, and how many have just been exposed. You also have to answer other questions: Have businesses gone back to work? Are all the kids back in school?”
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) partnered with Epistemix for the IFT FIRST: Annual Event and Expo, held this past July at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. “It was important for us to communicate to our members and attendees our commitment to their health and well-being by partnering with a science-based company that can model risks based on historical data,” said Melodie Anderson, CEM, DES, senior director of meeting and exhibition experiences at IFT. “Thanks to Epistemix’s program, we were able to make an informed decision to eliminate our health and safety protocols for the meeting after analyzing the low risk for our event. Our announcement just weeks before the event likely boosted registration by providing science-based information to those who may have been hesitant to register.”
Trade show organizers can use a variety of forecasts that incorporate not only what’s happening with COVID, but also what’s happening in people’s behavior to help trade show organizers plan. “If something is on the horizon, you can plan accordingly. When you look at a weather forecast, you can look at it daily or weekly,” Cordier said. “But for larger events, when you’re looking at rolling out comprehensive protocols for events that may take place months in advance, having a warning that’s specific enough to help trade show organizers set expectations is critical.”
Contact John Cordier at john.cordier@epistemix.com; Melody Anderson at manderson@ift.org