Trade Show Cost Per Lead: How to Calculate It

Cost per lead is the simplest way to compare one trade show with another, or with other channels. It is also easy to get wrong, usually by leaving costs out.

The formula

Cost per lead = total cost ÷ leads captured

That's all there is to it. The work is in getting total cost right.

What goes into total cost

• Tickets or stand cost. Visitor passes, or the stand package if you exhibit.
• Travel and accommodation. Trains, fuel, parking, hotels.
• Other costs. Printed material, food, tools and any samples.
• Staff time. People × days × cost per person per day.

Staff time is the item most often left out, and it is often the biggest. A day of someone's salary cost is a real cost, whether or not it appears on an invoice.

A worked example

Example:

• Tickets: £600
• Travel and accommodation: £900
• Other costs: £150
• Staff time: 3 people × 2 days × £250 = £1,500
• Total cost: £3,150
• Leads captured: 45

Cost per lead = £3,150 ÷ 45 = £70

Leave staff time out and the answer drops to £36.67, which makes the show look almost twice as good as it was.

Try your own numbers with the free cost per lead calculator.

Cost per qualified lead

Not every lead is worth the same. If you mark leads as qualified, divide total cost by qualified leads as well. In the example above, 12 qualified leads gives £262.50 per qualified lead. This is usually the fairer number to compare between shows.

Going further: weighted pipeline

Cost per lead tells you what a lead cost. It doesn't tell you what it was worth. For that, weight each opportunity by its stage and add them up. Our guide on how to calculate trade show ROI explains how.

Comparing shows

Use the same method every time. The absolute figure matters less than the comparison: which shows produce leads at a cost you are happy with, and which don't.

Beagle Team works out cost per lead for every show from the team's captures and the attendance cost you log against each show.