Episode
Trust is Broken. Cvent bet a billion it isn’t
- Published
- Jul 24, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 1033
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Summary
Cvent just bet a billion dollars that presence, not swag, not badges, not brochures, is the rarest signal left in B2B marketing. They're calling it the presence premium: in a world where AI can fake almost anything, showing up in person is the one thing it still can't. Megan Martin spent Cvent Connect 2026 in Nashville as one of only ten creators hand-picked for Cvent's first-ever hosted creator program, the first of its kind in the events industry. In this solo, no-guest edition of Event About It, she breaks down five takeaways almost nobody else is reporting on, and holds Cvent's own numbers up to the same scrutiny she'd apply to any client's data. What you'll learn: Why Cvent's "trust recession" stats (85% say AI content is harder to trust, 81% say in-person events raise audience trust) are worth reading twice, and the one question every marketer should ask before quoting vendor-commissioned event ROI data in a budget meeting. What the new Cvent Center for Event Insights signals about the future of first-party data and event attribution, and why Megan thinks it could become the most cited research source in the industry within two years. Why the ON24 and Goldcast acquisitions aren't a contradiction to Cvent's in-person pivot. They're the bridge between event technology and martech. What it means that Cvent IQ runs on MCP, the same protocol connecting AI agents like Claude and ChatGPT to outside tools, and why that could reshape event technology before anyone has a clean use case for it. The real lesson from Cvent's inaugural creator program, plus two chaotic behind-the-scenes stories from the show floor and one deeply humbling DoorDash run-in with Cvent's entire C-suite. Watch the real-time Field Notes recaps, recorded on-site in Nashville: https://www.you…