From Low Buzz to 10,000+ Footfalls –
Hyderabad Business Expo’s 15-Day
Success Surge
based ads, and precision targeting—executed over a 15-day Meta campaign.
About the Client
Client Overview – Hyderabad Business Expo
Brand Name
Hyderabad Education Expo
A large-scale education-focused exhibition that connects students, parents, and academic institutions to explore opportunities, courses, and educational services — all under one roof.
Industry
Education Exhibitions & Trade Shows
A fast-growing segment within the textile industry, home tailoring blends traditional craftsmanship with modern convenience. It caters to customers seeking personalized, on-demand fashion services delivered right to their doorstep—bridging the gap between boutique-level tailoring and daily wear practicality.
Location
Kings Crown Convention, Mehdipatnam, Hyderabad
Centrally located to attract both students and educational institutions from across the city, the venue enhances accessibility, ensuring strong footfall from local academic hubs and residential areas.
Project Objectives
The Hyderabad Business Expo, hosted at Kings Crown Convention in Mehdipatnam, Hyderabad, aimed to significantly boost both visitor footfall and stall bookings through a concentrated digital campaign. Despite its growing local presence, the event faced a highly competitive landscape with legacy exhibitions like Numaish dominating public attention. CMO.Ltd was brought in with the objective of driving over 10,000 attendees and securing more than 100 stall bookings across 12 industry sectors—all within a brief 15-day promotional window. The client sought not just attendance, but also meaningful engagement from business professionals, entrepreneurs, and startup founders across the city.
Funnel Development & Landing Page Optimization
Given the short turnaround time, no dedicated landing page was developed for this campaign. Instead, the funnel strategy prioritized low-friction conversion paths within the platforms themselves. The call-to-action structure relied on direct-to-inbox communication through Meta’s integrated messaging tools, enabling quick inquiries and instant responses. This approach allowed the campaign to move leads directly into conversation and booking stages without the delay or complexity of multi-step form submissions. The simplicity of the funnel design helped maintain momentum across all 15 days of the campaign, which was crucial for meeting the aggressive timeline and performance targets.
Strengthening Data & Tracking Infrastructure
To ensure precise performance measurement and actionable optimization during the campaign, CMO.Ltd implemented a full tracking infrastructure across all touchpoints. Meta Pixel was deployed to capture behavioral data from ad interactions, while Google Analytics offered a broader perspective on user flow and engagement. In parallel, Google Conversion Tracking provided clarity on final actions such as form submissions and stall inquiries. These tools enabled real-time analysis, allowing the marketing team to identify top-performing audiences, creatives, and placements, and make swift adjustments where needed. The tracking stack also established a solid data foundation for future retargeting and audience-building.
Paid Media Strategy: Meta & Google Ads
The campaign leveraged Google Ads and Meta platforms strategically. On Google, a mix of search, display, and video ads was launched to capture intent-based and contextual audiences. On Meta (Facebook and Instagram), the focus was on emotional storytelling through Reels, Stories, and feed creatives. Ads were structured around key audience personas, including students aged 14–18, exam-takers, and parents, all geo-targeted within a hyperlocal radius of the Kings Crown Convention venue in Mehdipatnam, Hyderabad. The channel mix allowed the brand to reach users both actively searching and passively exploring, maximizing media impact across the buyer journey.
Creative Strategy &
Testing
Creatively, the campaign adopted a UGC-first approach. Authenticity was prioritized over polish — real voices from past students, parents, and educators formed the core of the creative library. These testimonial-driven ads helped build emotional resonance and establish credibility. A/B testing was employed to refine headline hooks, visuals, and call-to-actions. Videos that opened with high-impact testimonial quotes and strong student outcomes saw significantly higher engagement, with CTRs outperforming traditional image ads by over 25%. Creative refresh cycles ensured ad fatigue was kept at bay throughout the campaign’s duration.
Campaign Results (15-Day Snapshot)
In just 45 days, the campaign delivered outstanding results. The total footfall reached 21,350, exceeding the initial goal of 20,000. This marked a 113.5% increase from the previous edition of the expo. Over 550 qualified leads were generated for exhibitors, contributing to a successful return on stall investments. The Google Ads campaign recorded an 8.2% click-through rate, and video ads on Meta reached a 35% view-through rate. Meta conversion rates averaged 12%, and the cost per lead was approximately ₹136 — an impressive efficiency metric considering the limited budget. The media plan’s structure — awareness to conversion — proved critical in delivering full-funnel ROI.
Scaling Performance Over Time
While this campaign was designed as a short-term activation, its performance laid the groundwork for long-term scalability. With detailed tracking systems in place, the client is now equipped to build lookalike audiences based on high-performing segments and retarget previous attendees and exhibitors for future expos. This opens up the possibility for more advanced multi-platform strategies in future editions, including expanded use of Google Display, YouTube ads, and email nurture sequences. The audience data captured during the 15-day run can now serve as a strategic asset for upcoming campaigns, allowing CMO.Ltd and the Hyderabad Business Expo team to scale both impact and efficiency over time.
Key Growth Drivers
Several factors contributed to the success of this campaign. First, user-generated content proved invaluable in establishing authenticity and emotional connection, which are critical in event marketing. By leveraging real voices and real stories, the campaign was able to bypass skepticism and create trust quickly. Second, exhibitor testimonials added significant weight to the value proposition, especially for first-time stall applicants who were uncertain about ROI. Finally, detailed targeting on Meta platforms enabled the team to reach high-intent audiences, including professionals, entrepreneurs, and B2B service providers in key business hubs around Hyderabad. This level of targeting ensured that every rupee spent was focused on attracting the most relevant and valuable prospects.
Final Takeaways
and 100+ stall bookings through precise targeting, UGC-driven creatives, and strategic ad execution.
This campaign proves that with the right mix of data, creativity, and focus, even short-term efforts can deliver
long-term impact and scalable success.