7 Examples of Event Goals and Objectives (Plus KPIs)

You can’t pull off a successful event if you don’t know what success looks like.

You know you need to set clear goals for your events. But what exactly should your event goals be and how do you measure them?

Creating events that resonate with your audience is about more than logistics. You need measurable objectives that align with your broader marketing strategy. Whether you're planning webinars, field marketing events, or full-scale conferences, outlining what success looks like is your critical first step.

This guide explores the most effective event goals for B2B marketers and their respective KPIs, plus our top tips for setting clear goals to keep your event program running like a well-oiled machine.

Ready to nail down your event objectives? Here are seven common high-level goals, plus the specific metrics you can track for each.

The cornerstone of event marketing success for many B2B organizations is pipeline generation. Events create natural opportunities to introduce your solution to potential buyers who might otherwise never interact with your brand.

What it looks like: Creating multiple touchpoints throughout your event, including clear next steps and relevant CTAs that gracefully move attendees into your sales process.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Marketing qualified leads (MQLs)
• Sales qualified leads (SQLs)
• Pipeline value attributed to the event
• Conversion rate from registration to opportunity
• Cost per lead (CPL)
• ROI

⭐ Example: For a product demo webinar, a pipeline generation objective might be converting 20% of attendees into sales calls within 48 hours.

“If you’re running events, you know that you really have to direct people to do a certain thing,” explains Goldcast CMO Kelly Cheng. “If you want someone to click on a CTA, you have to call that out during the event.”

Events aren't just about new leads. They can also shorten sales cycles by warming up existing opportunities and moving them closer to a buying decision.

What it looks like: Designing content that addresses specific objections that might be slowing down prospects in your funnel.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Opportunity progression rate post-event
• Percentage of pipeline influenced by attendance
• Average deal size of influenced opportunities
• Sales cycle length reduction
• Opportunity-to-win conversion rate for attendees
• Post-event meeting conversion rate

⭐ Example: For an executive roundtable, an acceleration objective could be progressing 30% of attending target accounts to late-stage opportunities within 30 days.

Sometimes your goal isn't immediate pipeline, but expanding your reach and getting your brand in front of new audiences.

What it looks like: Creating high-value content and memorable event experiences that leave attendees with a positive impression of your brand.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Total reach across channels (registration page views, social impressions)
• Social media engagement (shares, comments, mentions)
• Website traffic increase during/after event
• Share of voice compared to competitors
• Brand sentiment analysis
• Organic search volume for brand terms post-event
• Earned media coverage

⭐ Example: For a thought leadership panel at a trade show, a brand awareness objective might be generating 50+ social media shares of event content within the first week.

Your best opportunity for growth often lies with existing customers. Customer-focused events help reduce churn and expand contracts.

What it looks like: Hosting exclusive customer events that show off new features or teach customers how to get more value from your solution.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Net Promoter Score (NPS) from attendees
• Retention rate for attendees vs. non-attendees
• Product/feature adoption rates
• Customer expansion revenue
• Upsell/cross-sell conversion rate
• Customer satisfaction scores
• Customer lifetime value (CLTV) impact

⭐ Example: For a customer training webinar, a retention objective could be increasing feature adoption by 25% among attendees within 30 days.

Community-building events create a network of relationships between your customers, partners, and prospects—with your brand at the center.

What it looks like: Creating spaces for genuine connection and knowledge sharing between participants, positioning your brand as a connector in your industry.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Repeat attendance rates
• Community platform engagement metrics
• User-generated content creation
• Active community membership growth
• Discussion participation rates
• Mentorship program participation
• Customer advocacy program growth

⭐ Example: For a user conference, a community-building objective might be enrolling 15% of attendees in a customer advocacy program.

Positioning your brand as a thought leader can help you stand out from competitors and attract prospects who value expertise and innovation.

What it looks like: Sharing original research, featuring industry experts, and helping attendees develop skills.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Content engagement metrics (views, downloads, time spent)
• Speaker/content quality scores from attendee survey
• Knowledge assessment scores (pre vs. post-event)
• Certification completion rates
• On-demand content consumption
• Expert/presenter social following growth

⭐ Example: For an educational series, a thought leadership objective could be having 40% of attendees download related resources or guides.

Since engaged users are more likely to take the actions you want them to post-event, attendee engagement is an objective that supports all your other event goals.

What it looks like: Creating interactive sessions, networking opportunities, and personalized experiences.

Measure with these KPIs:

• Average session attendance duration
• Poll/survey participation
• Q&A submission volume and quality
• Chat activity
• Networking participation
• Interactive feature usage (reactions, emoji responses)
• Content engagement (downloads, clicks)

⭐ Example: For a hybrid conference, an engagement objective might be achieving 75% participation in live polls and Q&A across both in-person and virtual attendees.

Now that you know what goals to consider, let's talk about how to establish objectives that will set you up for success from the start.

Field marketing expert Kayla Drake suggests starting with your high-level marketing strategy. “Start at the top and work your way down,” she recommends. “What are your business goals that you’re trying to achieve? Let that create your goals for the entire year. That way, you know what your true north is.”

Your event shouldn't exist in isolation. It should advance your broader marketing goals and business objectives.

✅ Do: Match event goals with your marketing priorities. For example, if your marketing team is focused on account-based marketing, design events specifically to engage target accounts.

🚫 Don't: Create standalone events with goals disconnected from your overall strategy. This wastes resources and weakens your impact.

You know your audience better than anyone. Your event format should fit both your audience and objectives.

✅ Do: Segment your target audience and set persona-specific objectives. For C-level execs, focus on thought leadership. For practitioners, offer actionable education and training.

🚫 Don't: Use a one-size-fits-all approach or force a fit between event format/audience/objective. A technical training isn't the right avenue for generating new pipeline from executive decision-makers.

For effective measurement, objectives should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

✅ Do: Create detailed goals with specific metrics and timeframes, focusing on 2-3 primary objectives. Instead of "generate leads," spell out "generate 50 MQLs from enterprise companies within two weeks of the event."

🚫 Don't: Set vague goals or try to accomplish everything at once.

Understanding your starting point helps you set realistic goals and measure performance.

✅ Do: Review past event performance and industry benchmarks when setting targets. If your webinars typically have a 30% attendance rate, a goal of 35% is perfectly appropriate.

🚫 Don't: Set goals in a vacuum. Unrealistic goals lead to perceived failure when performance might actually be solid.

Determine how you'll track each metric and who's responsible for doing so.

✅ Do: Spell out which tools you'll use to measure each KPI and how frequently you'll analyze results. The right event management platform makes this much easier by integrating with your martech stack.

🚫 Don't: Wait until after the event to figure out how you'll measure success.

Different event formats naturally support different objectives. In general, it’s better to ask “Which event type fits my goals?” But if you’ve already landed on a format and are looking to set some SMART goals, here are the best objectives for each common type of event.

Webinars excel at lead generation, education, and thought leadership, especially when targeting larger audiences.

Best for:

• Generating new pipeline
• Increasing brand awareness
• Driving thought leadership and education

These invitation-only, smaller events strengthen relationships with high-value prospects.

Best for:

• Accelerating existing pipeline
• Building community among key decision-makers
• Driving customer retention and expansion

Training sessions and product launch events help customers get more value from their partnership with you, driving retention and expansion opportunities.

Best for:

• Driving customer retention and expansion
• Increasing product adoption and feature usage
• Building community among users

Online conferences build your brand and create in-person connections, though they typically require a heftier investment.

Best for:

• Increasing brand awareness
• Generating new pipeline
• Building community across your industry

Community events serve a range of objectives, from connecting your user base to product announcements and education.

Best for:

• Building community
• Increasing adoption
• Driving customer retention and expansion

Measuring true event ROI goes far beyond counting registrants and attendees. With a platform that connects to your CRM and other tech, you can track engagement throughout the attendee journey, including:

• Pre-event: Track email open rates, registration page engagement, and pre-event content consumption to gauge initial interest.
• During event: Monitor session attendance, duration, engagement with interactive features, content downloads, and participation in networking.
• Post-event: Follow content consumption, meetings, product usage changes, and progression through your sales pipeline.
• Long term: Measure influenced pipeline, closed revenue, customer retention, and community growth over time.

Setting meaningful goals is the foundation of event marketing success. Choosing clear objectives, and the right KPIs, helps you position events as strategic revenue drivers within your organization.

We built Goldcast to help B2B marketers connect every touchpoint in the customer journey to business outcomes, from the moment they register for an event to closing a deal and beyond. That means:

• Comprehensive engagement tracking: See who attended and how they engaged, including poll responses, questions asked, content downloads, and time spent per session.
• Real-time visibility: Monitor engagement during your event to see which content is resonating and adjust accordingly on the fly.
• Seamless integrations: Sync event data with your CRM to give the sales team follow-up insights.
• Multi-touch attribution: See how your events influence pipeline creation and acceleration.

When you approach event planning with a strategic mindset, you'll create experiences that not only delight attendees but also deliver measurable results to your business.

Want to see how Goldcast can help you measure event performance and prove ROI? Request a demo today.