Why Associations Need More Intentionality in Events

Association members are more selective with their time, sponsors are more demanding about return on investment, and the wider industry expects associations to take a clearer stance on leadership, standards and advocacy. 

Increasingly, success comes from being intentional, in strategy, governance, programming and communication. Intentionality is becoming a requirement for relevance. 

An increasing number of event professionals and associations are tackling this reality from different angles. At Cvent CONNECT Europe, Richard Morris, founder of Active Media Events, and Richard John, COO of event agency Realise.Me urged associations to step back and take a strategic look at their event portfolios. 

Re-evaluating your event portfolio 

Morris issues a challenge: stop running on autopilot. Too many organizations, he argues, continue to deliver events simply because they’ve “always done them.” Some have become flagship fixtures that resist change; others drain resources without generating meaningful results.

For associations, those legacy events can be the hardest to question. 

Morris and Richard John offer a simple but effective framework for evaluating events based on two factors: success metrics and resource requirements. Their matrix helps identify four types of events:

1. Cash cows: High success, high resource. These are the flagship events that deliver value but often resist innovation.
2. Danger zones: High resource, low success. These events consume time and money but don’t deliver against objectives.
3. Robin Hoods: High success, low resource. These efficient, well-targeted events often emerge from creativity and focus.
4. Charlie Browns: Low success, low resource. Modest efforts that may serve niche purposes or need rethinking altogether.

The takeaway is simple: not all events deserve equal attention. Association planners should identify which ones to nurture, which to optimize, and which to sunset. The goal isn’t just efficiency; it’s strategic clarity.

You can start by asking a single question when new event ideas surface: “How does this support our objectives?” That question often reveals when enthusiasm is outpacing strategy.

It can be hard to say no. But sometimes, the most strategic thing to do is push back and assess why.

As John says, “Event-Led Growth offers immense opportunities for associations. But they need to understand and embrace

 hyper-personalization, total audience engagement and effective marketing segmentation, along with effective utilization of the new awesome event technology. There are some wonderful events out there that demonstrate this, but they are still the exception, not the norm. Associations that don’t grasp this will become a footnote in history.”

💡For more tips on how to achieve success with your association events, check out this post. 

Event stakeholders have different voices 

It’s clearly a challenge to navigate competing stakeholder expectations. Board members, sponsors, and attendees often have different ideas of what success looks like, and too often, the loudest voices dominate.

Morris suggests gathering structured feedback from across the organization using surveys or benchmarking tools. This can reveal whether different teams share the same vision for an event or whether there’s a disconnect. When responses are weighted by role or influence, it helps identify which priorities truly align with the organization’s goals.

According to Morris, "2026 offers a critical reset point. In a climate of rising costs, associations must seize the opportunity to re-evaluate their greatest asset: their audience. By shifting the perspective, stopping to view members merely as attendees and starting to recognise them as a powerful buying group."

Intentional event design starts with intentional communication. Without clarity of purpose, even the most well-produced event can miss the mark.

Evaluating long-term event outcomes 

There’s a temptation to repeat events that have been run before, simply because that’s what’s been done in previous years, often as an attempt to recapture old successes. 

After all, who wants to rock the boat? But it’s vital to consider the long-term outcomes that come after the live experience is over. We need to factor this in as early as possible during the design phase. Does the event need to be the same? Perhaps it needs to take a different shape. Does it even have to be run at all? 

Knowing why you’re creating an event is as relevant as working out how you’ll do it.

Choose the battles that matter  

The need for associations to maintain focus is vital. Not every challenge is worth the investment in time and resources to fight for it.

Feedback, too, requires perspective. Attendees and stakeholders view events through different lenses, and what we may hear as criticism, may in fact be meant as helpful advice. 

Key takeaways for event associations 

• Audit your event portfolio. Identify your high-value events and consider cutting any low-impact ones.
• Use a success vs. resource matrix. Guide your decisions based on the Cash cow, Danger zone, Robin Hood, and Charlie Brown categories.
• “How does this support our objectives?” Use this question as your primary filter before approving events.
• Say no when needed. To be as effective as possible, you need to protect your team’s focus. Saying yes to every event can lead to your team becoming overwhelmed and overworked. Learn to say “No” when you need to.
• Balance stakeholder feedback. Collect structured input from members, sponsors, and staff and use it all to inform your decisions.
• Focus on post-event impact. Measure engagement, revenue, or advocacy to create clear goals for the future.

Intentionality is the new unifying thread in events  

Intentionality can be the key to success for associations.

For associations, that means making deliberate choices about which events to run, how to measure success, and where to allocate resources. 

The industry’s future will demand agility, yes, but it will also demand focus. The planners and organizations that thrive will be those that pause long enough to ask the right questions before diving into the next big thing.

Whether you’re managing an entire event portfolio or running a single show, success now depends on being deliberate about where you invest your time, energy, and creativity.