10 Experiential Marketing Statistics You Need to Know in 2023

2022 was experiential marketing’s comeback year. The year that event professionals dreamed about after the pandemic brought the industry to its knees overnight. As we inch our way into the new year, experiential marketers are more than ready to keep on trucking in 2023 by continuing to deliver immersive and interactive experiences that consumers love.

Below, we’ve pulled together ten significant statistics highlighting the current state of the experiential marketing industry and where it’s headed in 2023.

The Comeback King: 10 Experiential Marketing Statistics You Need to Know in 2023

• 90% of B2B marketers and 70% of B2C marketers executed at least one in-person event in the latter half of 2022. ~Agency EA
• Attendance levels have recovered more quickly for B2C events, with 64% of B2C brands saying that attendance has reached 2019 levels (76%+), while only 45% of B2B brands have reached those levels. ~EventMarketer
• 63% of brands executed more or the same number of live events in 2022 compared to 2019. ~EventMarketer
• 64%  of B2B marketers and 40% of B2C marketers anticipate their budget will increase in 2023. ~Agency EA
• Conferences and tradeshows have made a slower comeback, but that’s expected to change in 2023, with a 3.3% projected increase. ~American Express Global Meetings and Events Forecast 2023
• 68% of B2C brands and 55% of B2B brands are more confident about the value of live events than they were pre-pandemic. ~EventMarketer
• After tanking 25.7% in 2020 to $62 billion, global experiential spend grew 8.2% in 2021 to $67.63 billion and 11.1% to 75.16 billion in 2022. To put things in perspective, spend was $84 billion in 2019. ~Global Experiential Marketing Forecast 
  • Forecasters project that spending will reach pre-pandemic levels in 2024, and “US experiential marketing spend is projected to outpace that of overall advertising & marketing investments and US GDP by 3-6 percentage points in the 2022-2026 period.” 

Consumers Crave Live Events and Experiences

2020 and 2021 taught us that humans crave connectivity, emotional ties, and interaction more than we realized. In 2022, as COVID concerns waned and festivals, events, and experiences became more mainstream and “normal” – i.e., no masks, no testing, no social distancing – people flocked to them in droves.

• Live Nation reported that 33.5 million people attended a live show in Q2 of 2022 compared to 27 million during Q2 of 2019. ~Axios 
• Even with rising costs, inflation, and tighter budgets, 70% of Americans say they will spend the same or more on live events in 2023, and 50% said they will attend more events. ~Eventbrite
  • 29% say they consider live events and experiences essential or a top priority. 

While brands are concerned about a possible recession for obvious reasons, these statistics show that consumers are more than willing to spend money on events and experiences now more than ever. That said, brands should take a hard look at how they can incorporate experiential marketing into their 2023 strategy. 

ATN Event Staffing is a premier experiential marketing event staffing agency that has staffed thousands of marketing campaigns, conferences, trade shows, and more over the last two decades!  We will work with you every step of the way to ensure that we provide you with the very best staff based on your needs.  If you would like to learn more about our event staffing solutions, we would love to chat!