Trade Show TalesBlog

Photo courtesy of Deja Views

Day 2 (RDC Innovation Day)

It was a day of epiphanies about the trade show industry. Bob McClintock, COO of SMG, gave the morning keynote:  A New Facility Model: Facility as Service Provider. I know. The title sounds pretty boring, but the topic and the speaker were anything but. SMG manages McCormick Place, the Pennsylvania Convention Center, and 70 other venues.

A. Evolution of Convention Center Service.

1. Originally convention center managers were “Landlords.” And Convention Center design could be described as “prison architecture,” or in the trade as “Boxes with Docks.”
2. Competition has forced them to adapt to become “Service Providers” with the goal of Hotel Quality Experiences.
3. Those include local, fresh, and healthy culinary experiences, shopping and dining experiences, and updated, contemporary buildings. The new model is designed to keep attendees in the building.
4. Labor changed as well, adopting a service provider mentality instead of a rights holder attitude.
5. Finally, he shared three in-progress success stories:  Cobo Center, McCormick Place, and Philadelphia.
6. I even learned a new acronym to describe the new business model:  WISMBR — What’s in Sight Must Be Right.

As with Day 1, there were more sessions than I could attend, but let me touch briefly on three. Here’s a link to the full Day 2 Schedule.

Photo courtesy of Deja Views

B. The Event Forecasting/Measurement Tool, by Bob Hughes. Bob’s company, The Hughes Group, has developed a new event forecasting and management tool that not only allows marketers to validate their exhibit and event spends, but also provides instruction on how marketing, sales, and operations can collaborate to optimize exhibit and event outcomes. It’s a deceptively simple online tool with a powerful database and analytical tools. It’s still in final stages of development, but I’ll let you know when it’s ready. It’s perfect for any trade show manager who wants a clear path to measuring ROI and collaboration with sales and marketing.

C. Driving Business Using Social Media, by Glass Mountain Media. Just a couple of comments from the session and then a very entertaining video about digital media.

1. Social Media must tell a story about your business and reinforce your culture.
2. Social Media must have a purpose and data to measure to its effectiveness.
3. All companies must think of themselves as publishers in a world dominated by digital content.
4. Quote:  It’s never been easier to reach customers. It’s never been harder to engage customers.
5. Encourage, not discourage, your employees to use Social Media, but coach them on how to use it for your company.

D. Closing Keynote:  Enhancing Exhibitor Value Enables Show Growth, Amanda Helgemoe and Sue Huff. There’s no possible way I could do justice to this enlightening and informative presentation about the ongoing economic pressures in our industry. Let’s just say that not everyone takes a long-term view about creating a healthy, sustainable face-to-face community. Take time to review the slide show (click on the image). You will see an obvious disparity in rising costs. You will and you won’t be surprised by the results (hint: see the chart below).

Last but not least, a generous thanks to Jim Wurm and his team at E2MA for a terrific conference. If you didn’t attend, you missed something special.

–Mel White
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
mel@classicexhibits.com

**********************************************

Based in Portland, Oregon, Classic Exhibits Inc. designs and manufacturers portable, modular, and custom-hybrid exhibit solutions. Classic Exhibits products are represented by an extensive distributor network in North America and in select International markets. For more information, contact us at 866-652-2100 or www.classicexhibits.com.

[subscribe2]

Day 1

I’m in Chicago this week for the E2MA Red Diamond Congress. For those unfamiliar with the Exhibit and Event Marketers Association and the RDC . . .

The E2MA is a community of exhibit and event marketers driven to benchmark the value of face-to face marketing. By facilitating discussions among all industry stakeholders, the E2MA’s Red Diamond Congress develops actionable ideas and solutions that can provide for industry growth and success.

What makes the RDC different from other exhibit industry events is the blending of exhibit managers, show organizers, labor contractors, union associations, and exhibit builders and distributors. There are no silos. The RDC brings everyone together to discuss shared concerns. In an industry with a history of finger pointing, it’s a refreshing and practical conference.

For those not here, I took a few notes. Not great notes admittedly, but notes.

A. Exhibit and Event Issues:

1. Competition for marketing budget dollars is increasing, which is . . .
2. Creating evolving strategies
3. Mixing tradeshows and events (48% of companies are doing private events)
4. Forcing cost reduction pressures
5. Putting even more focus on measurement and ROI

B. Research shows that the more engagement on the show floor, the more successful the purchase intent. Not a surprise.

C. Overall Exhibitor Retention — Average 80% (which means 1 of 5 exhibitors don’t return)

D. Exhibits and Events represent 42% of media spending for companies, second only to digital. That was a surprise to me.

E. 15 consecutive quarters of industry growth with attendance as the leading metric. Good news.

F. Average international attendance at North American shows — 15% of all attendees (at major shows). Is your client prepared for this attendee?

G. $80 billion dollar industry in the U.S.

Kudos to the All Industry Panel. A very informative session (which could have been twice as long). It was beneficial to hear the perspectives of these industry leaders.

• Skip Cox, Exhibit Surveys
• Jeff Provost, Exhibit Designers and Producers Assn. (EDPA)
• Brian Casey, Convention and Exhibition Research (CEIR)
• Larry Arnaudet, Exhibition Service Contractors Assn. (ESCA)
• Mike Pennington, Healthcare Convention and Exhibition Assn. (HCEA)
• David DuBois, Intl. Assn. of Exhibits and Events (IAEE)
• Lew Shomer, Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO)
• Jim Wurn, Exhibit and Event Marketers Assn. (E2MA)

Special kudos to the Bridging the Generational Gap breakout session hosted by Amy Yag, Amanda Helgemoe, and Pat Friedlander. It was a lively and interactive session on how Baby Boomers, GenX, and Millennials communicate and in particular, how Millennials view the workplace (i.e., corporate culture is big, collaboration is even bigger, and they need and want a clear job description and career path).

The RDC afternoon schedule featured multiple breakout sessions, including the Generational Gap. See the link for the full Day 1 agenda. I attended Developing Your Team and DIY Research, which were both well-presented and informative.

Finally, to my fellow “Dinner with Strangers” at Seasons 22, thank you for the enjoyable evening. I’ve already done a search on the FBI Most Wanted list. No one is in the Top 10 . . . yet.

Day 2 begins in about two hours.

Oh yes, most of the sessions are being recorded, so I’m assuming they’ll be available on the E2MA website at some point.

–Mel White
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
mel@classicexhibits.com

**********************************************

Based in Portland, Oregon, Classic Exhibits Inc. designs and manufacturers portable, modular, and custom-hybrid exhibit solutions. Classic Exhibits products are represented by an extensive distributor network in North America and in select International markets. For more information, contact us at 866-652-2100 or www.classicexhibits.com.

[subscribe2]