As event costs continue to rise, retention should be the industry’s top strategic focus in 2026, said Ken Holsinger, senior vice president of industry research and insights at Freeman.
“Everybody wants to talk about rising costs, and we should because they’re painful, but what’s really costly is attendee acquisition,” said Holsinger. “It’s easier to retain a customer than it is to attract a new one.”
Average attendee retention is 30% year over year, forcing planners to replace nearly 70% of their audience each year, according to Freeman.
Holsinger recommends that event planners borrow a page from broader business strategy by focusing on two metrics rarely discussed in events: customer acquisition cost (CAC) and customer lifetime value (LTV).
“The zero-sum opportunity with events is to lower CAC and raise LTV,” he said.
Attendee Objectives Must be Met
Freeman research shows that retention is tied to whether attendees achieve specific objectives, including meaningful networking, hands-on experiences, access to subject-matter experts, and clearly defined peak moments, which are standout experiences aligned with attendee goals.
Attendees who meet these objectives are 85% more likely to return. In contrast, first-time attendees whose goals aren’t met often leave quietly without completing surveys.
Demographic shifts are compounding the problem. Retirement is now outpacing retention, a trend Holsinger warned could destabilize events.
Millennials and Gen Zers will account for 75% of the workforce by 2030, according to Holsinger, and their expectations differ sharply from prior generations.
“They will not attend events out of loyalty, like Baby Boomers. Their goals must be met,” he said.
“People have choices, and choices are good for the attendee, but can be challenging for an organization that hasn’t updated, hasn’t found ways to navigate to the preferences of audiences, really listening to what they want,” said Holsinger.
The Events Industry Showed Resilience in 2025
Freeman’s latest trends report is a synthesis of insights drawn from tens of thousands of planners, attendees, and exhibitors surveyed in 2025.
Despite geopolitical uncertainty, visa chatter, and economic headwinds, the events industry proved more resilient than expected in 2025, said Holsinger. Overall attendance declined between 1-4%, with growth in sectors such as manufacturing, supply chain, and retail offsetting softness in government and healthcare-related events.
Holsinger frames 2025 as a year in which the industry “navigated uncertainty with learned resilience,” reinforcing the enduring value of face-to-face meetings as a trust-building channel.
