Can Qualtrics replace Explori for event measurement?

Qualtrics can run event surveys. What it cannot do is benchmark those results against an external database of comparable events, or produce a portfolio view across your full event programme without significant analyst effort. The question is not which platform runs the survey, it is what the output is.

Can Explori and Qualtrics work together?

Yes. Some organisations use Qualtrics for broader research programmes and Explori specifically for event intelligence. They solve different problems and can coexist.

Do I need a researcher to use Explori?

Explori is built for event teams and marketing leaders and does not depend on an in-house research specialist to produce executive-ready intelligence. The platform applies a consistent measurement framework automatically and produces synthesis ready to share with leadership. Where a research function does exist, research leads get more out of Explori, it gives them a faster, benchmarked event layer they would otherwise build by hand.

Why doesn't Qualtrics have event benchmarks?

Qualtrics is a general-purpose research platform, its value is flexibility. Explori's benchmark database exists because Explori measures events exclusively, at scale, for over a decade. Specificity is the product.

Explori vs Qualtrics

Comparison

Qualtrics is an enterprise research platform built for organisations with dedicated research teams. Explori is purpose-built Executive Event Intelligence: it governs event investment with or without an in-house researcher, and works alongside research teams that have one. The comparison that matters is not features, it is what each platform produces, and who can use the output.

What each platform is actually for

Qualtrics

Qualtrics is a capable general-purpose research platform.

It gives skilled researchers full control over survey design, statistical methodology, and analysis, and CX teams, market research functions, and academic institutions use it across many business questions.

It is built for research breadth across functions, not for events specifically, and it expects an in-house researcher to operate it.

Explori

Explori is built for event teams and marketing leaders who need to measure impact and govern investment with or without an in-house researcher.

The platform applies a consistent measurement framework across every event, benchmarks results against a dataset of 10,000+ events measured since 2012, and produces executive-ready intelligence automatically.

The question it answers is not what did respondents say, it is did the event achieve what it was supposed to achieve, and how does that compare to everything else we run.

Teams that do have a research function use it too, because it gives them a faster, benchmarked event layer they would otherwise build by hand.

Side by side

Capability	Qualtrics	Explori
Primary use case	Custom research across CX, EX, and market research	Event impact measurement and portfolio intelligence
Event benchmark database	None	10,000+ events measured since 2012 across 40+ countries
Executive output	Requires analyst to build	Automated, executive-ready synthesis
Portfolio comparability	Manual, requires consistent survey design	Built-in, consistent framework across every event
Researcher required	Yes, effective use requires research expertise	Works with or without an in-house research function.
Attitudinal and intent measurement	Possible with custom design	Purpose-built measurement framework
Time to insight	Days to weeks depending on analyst	Automated on data collection

The gap that matters

The structural difference is benchmarking. Qualtrics can build a sophisticated survey, collect a large sample, and run complex statistical analysis, and still produce a result with no external reference point. A 4.2 satisfaction score from Qualtrics tells you what respondents said. Explori's benchmark database tells you whether 4.2 is excellent, average, or poor for your event type, your sector, and your audience profile. This is the difference between data and intelligence.

Who should use each

Use Qualtrics if

If you need broad, general-purpose research tooling across many business functions and have the in-house expertise to run it, Qualtrics fits that brief.

Use Explori if

Even if you have an in-house research team, event teams choose Explori for events specifically: an event-specific benchmark database, automated executive-ready output, a responsive Customer Success team that goes beyond the platform, and Explori's own researchers on hand for guidance. You get event intelligence with or without a researcher in the loop, and your research team gets a faster, benchmarked event layer instead of building one by hand.

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