Local Impacts Matter
Event Impact Measurement Tools for Local Government
This course equips government professionals with knowledge and practical tools on the why, what and how of measuring the economic and social impact of events.
It's for economic development practitioners looking to upskill and understand cost-effective impact measurement methods, allowing you to assess ROI and make better informed, data-led decisions.
It will arm you with the knowledge and skills needed to confidently advocate for investment in events for your community.
Course delivery and support
We deliver this course content either via a whole day workshop, or email.
For those seeking a self-guided approach, over six weeks you’ll recieve an email every Tuesday with that week’s course content, supporting materials, templates and additional reading.
Our Director Stu Speirs will be in touch throughout your six weeks to answer any questions or discuss how the course learnings could be applied to your event.
For more details, see the course content below and have a look through our FAQs.
Course content
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Lesson 1: The big picture - A look back at government involvement in events
A brief history of government involvement in events and how its shaped today’s major events landscape.
We’ll also walk through a disconnect between the priorities of state and local government, and provide you with an exercise to think through what your current calendar of events delivers for your community.
Lesson 2: Impact measurement essentials – Getting your philosophy and priorities right
Before diving into the what and how of measurement, let’s get the clear on the why.
In this week’s lesson we’ll discuss why measurement is important, how to define the metrics that reflect your community’s priorities and a foundational truth about research and measurement that should be kept front and centre when thinking about your measurement program.
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Lesson 3: Accurately estimating event attendance
An event’s unique person attendance is the most critical figure to get right when measuring an event’s impact.
For wholly ticketed events this is something we don’t need to think to hard about. However, if an event is free, multi-day and/or covers a number of venues, then accurately estimating attendance is going to be a harder nut to crack.
In this week’s lesson we’re going to dive into how to credibly estimate the size of an event’s attendance.
Lesson 4: Economic impact evaluation
In this week’s lesson we delve into the detail behind a robust economic impact assessment.
It will provide you with the knowledge and tools required to calculate the economic impact of an event in a way that aligns with the methodologies used by state-based Destination Marketing Organisations.
Lesson 5: Social and strategic impact evaluation
This week we look into measuring the community and cultural benefits that often go uncaptured in traditional impact assessments.
We’ll provide you with a two key metrics that can be used across all communities. One that indicates the social impact of an event retrospectively, and another that is key to the events ongoing sustainability.
From there we’ll explore creating bespoke metrics applicable to your place’s unique dynamics.
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Lesson 6: Return on investment calculation and compelling reporting
You’ve collected all your data, cleaned it, analysed it, and now its time to put it into a format that facilitates the decision making its designed for.
In this final week we walk through how to: 1. benchmark the ROI delivered by events against each other, 2. identify storylines within datasets, and 3. write compelling reports for colleagues and stakeholders.
Course FAQs
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Whole day workshop: Our Director Stu Speirs will facilitate a whole day session with your team. Led by the core content, this is suited to teams who’d like to bounce off each other as the learning unfolds.
Email: Bright and early every Tuesday morning you’ll recieve an email in your inbox with that week’s course content, further reading and resources. Your course will start on the Tuesday following registration, whether that be via invoice or credit card payment.
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Whole day workshop: $3,100+GST, plus travel expenses.
Email: The six weeks are priced at $750+GST for a single registrant and $1,350+GST for a subscription to cover up to 5 staff. Costs include ongoing support as you make your way through the course.
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By the end of the six weeks, you'll be able to:
Better understand the context and history of Government involvement and investment in events
Develop measurement frameworks aligned with both your council's strategic priorities and state-level Destination Marketing Organisations
Accurately estimate and report on event attendance and participation
Calculate defensible economic impact figures for various event types
Measure and effectively communicate social and community benefits
Create compelling reports that justify event investments to council and community
Make data-driven decisions about the level of support each event on your calendar merits
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Unlike generic event measurement approaches, this course:
Delivers templates and frameworks that have been used across Australia that you can implement immediately
Is specifically tailored to Australian local government contexts and constraints
Provides practical, cost-effective methodologies that don't require expensive sampling, market research or software
Focuses on metrics that resonate with council decision-makers and community stakeholders
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Our Director Stu Speirs will be on hand at any time throughout your course to answer any questions, hear your feedback or chat through how the learnings from this course can be applied to your specific circumstances.
* Meet your course guide
* Meet your course guide
Meet Stu Speirs, Silver Lining Strategy’s Founder and Director.
A market research specialist with over 20 years of experience in event impact measurement and evaluation.
Stu's expertise includes:
Co-developing the economic impact evaluation framework used by Destination NSW,
Leading the evaluation team at Events NSW (now Destination NSW) between 2008-2012,
Creating methodologies and investment frameworks now adopted by federal tourism bodies, destination agencies and councils across Australasia,
Being a leading practitioner of social impact measurement of events and cultural organisations in line with Standards Australia’s Measuring and valuing social impact
This course distils his extensive experience and professional qualifications into practical tools that work specifically for local government contexts and budgets.