While spend on B2B events remains high, budgets and resources continue to come under massive strain as teams struggle to demonstrate value and justify increased investment.This webinar shares findings from Forrester’s Q1 2026 State Of B2B Events Survey and looks at the challenges leaders face, the changes they're making to their event mix and content, their top priorities and how they're using event technology and AI as they adapt to a complex and dynamic environment.Key takeaways: Explore key findings from Forrester’s Q1 2026 State Of B2B Events Survey. Understand how leaders are approaching budgeting, the mix of events, priorities, and AI among other areas.Take actionable next steps to help you adapt to the new event environment.Target audience level: all levels

Questionnaire responses submitted by vendors for The Virtual Event Management Platforms Landscape, Q1 2026, show a clear transformation in the market. During (and following) the COVID-19 pandemic, vendors primarily focused their differentiation efforts on the ability to deliver. In 2026, buyers simply assume that this capability exists and competition has shifted to what platforms enable […]

Companies with less than $500 million in revenue dedicate more funds to events than companies with larger revenues. Regional patterns show APAC leading in event spend. And industry differences are pronounced, with nearly half of the manufacturing and production and professional, business, and technology services respondents surveyed in Forrester’s Marketing Budgets Survey, 2025 allocating over 30% of programs budgets to events. This report analyzes these variations to provide a clear view of how event spending functions as a consistent, though not uniform, component of B2B marketing.

B2B event teams are operating under sustained pressure. Budgets are constrained, audience expectations are evolving, and large volumes of event content and data remain underused. At the same time, leaders are under pressure to demonstrate clearer impact from every event they run. AI offers a way to respond to these pressures. It can improve team […]

AI will transform every aspect of how organizations plan and deliver events, but leaders should be wary of trying to do too much, too quickly. Successful AI adoption requires a focused and disciplined approach. In this report, we introduce the Forrester Event AI Readiness Assessment Framework, which outlines the five critical areas leaders must focus on for successful AI adoption: developing a clear vision and strategy for AI for events, putting robust governance in place to ensure responsible and ethical use, selecting the right technology, managing data securely and effectively, and building teams that are equipped and ready to use AI.

Event teams are operating in a challenging environment of constrained budgets, evolving audience needs, underutilized event content, and untapped data. AI will help event leaders and planners respond by improving team productivity and efficiency, enhancing attendee experiences, and maximizing the long-term value of their events. In this report, we present nine AI use cases for event teams to review across the three phases of the event lifecycle.

Virtual events aren’t disappearing — but they are transforming. Forrester data shows that while a majority of marketers believe that virtual events are a permanent part of their event mix, the pandemic days of multiday, multisession virtual events are long gone. Instead, marketers are focused on simpler virtual events, with 43% planning to run more […]

AVEVA, a leader in industrial software, wanted to accelerate growth by deepening its relationships with strategic enterprise accounts. Despite having a strong product portfolio and global presence, its marketing efforts were fragmented and its account penetration was limited. To address this, AVEVA adopted Forrester’s account-based marketing (ABM) methodology and leveraged the Forrester Demand Spectrum framework, which emphasizes alignment across insights, collaboration, and customization. In this case study, we examine how AVEVA transformed its ABM program globally into a structured, insight-driven strategy that positioned it as a trusted partner to its most valuable customers.

You can use a virtual event management platform to reach global audiences cost-effectively and sustainably, capture audience data and insights, and create reusable content assets to drive ongoing engagement. But to realize these benefits, you’ll first have to select from a diverse set of vendors that vary by size, type of offering, geography, and use case differentiation. B2B marketers and event leaders should use this report to understand the value they can expect from a virtual event management platform vendor, learn how vendors differ, and investigate options based on size and market focus.

As the events industry continues to undergo rapid transformation, Cvent’s recent acquisitions of ON24 and Goldcast signal a strategic shift toward deeper enterprise engagement, as well as stronger alignment across marketing and events. While both deals strengthen Cvent’s position, they also raise important questions about integration, data strategy, and long‑term platform vision. This blog explores […]