What are Basic Attendance Impacts?

• Total Attendance
• Unique Attendees
• Attendance by Group

Overview & Considerations

The basic attendance impacts listed here are measures which are both relatively simple to capture and provide a basic analysis of attendance at an event. To many event organisers, capturing this data will be extremely straight-forward, but it remains the fact that error in stating the overall 'event population' is the single biggest cause of inaccuracy in the reporting of other impacts (such as economic and environmental impact).

Attendance does not necessarily mean the numbers of spectators or audience alone. Where relevant, attendance can be taken to include participants (athletes/performers), support staff, media, sponsors, officials and volunteers. Categorising attendees in this way can help when measuring other impacts that assess the behaviour of different groups at the event.

Routes to Measurement

Many events organisers will already have access to attendance data. The key consideration when assessing the scope to measure attendance is in determining whether it is a ticketed or non-ticketed event, as this strongly influences the approach required.

For ticketed events, organisers will have access to box office and ticket distribution data, although this may only provide an indication of sales and distribution. This may need to be cross-referenced with other sources that determine actual number of attendees, and which many organisers may already need to monitor linked to health and safety requirements.

For non-ticketed events, the approach is more complex and may require some primary research using a methodology to estimate crowd sizes. Guidance on this approach is included in the Intermediate Attendance Impacts section.