40% of corporate exhibitors and exhibition management professionals feel digital marketing is vital to the execution of live events, while 17 percent of respondents consider it a lead tactic, according to a study by the The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) and marketing firm George P. Johnson.

What's more, 81% of respondents rely on webinars — the most common virtual event strategy used.

"The findings underscore the complementary nature of the exhibition and digital marketing channels, which are both rooted in communities of interest, dialog, relationships, interactivity and highly personalized experiences," stated President Doug Ducate of CEIR.

Other findings:

• 10% of respondents' exhibition production budgets go into digital marketing sponsorship tactics.
• 40% consider digital marketing vital in the execution of live events; 17 percent dubbed it a lead tactic.
• Email marketing is the most-used digital marketing tactic for exhibition production and corporate brand managers (95% and 87%, respectively).
• 40% of corporate brand marketers and 31% of exhibition management execs report using virtual media.