We wrapped up Shared Knowledge University last week. Another amazing group of attendees! There’s just something about SKU that sparks joy, delight, and the urge to sing kumbaya (at least silently). Kevin offers his take on SKU, EDPA Access, and several other topics in this vlog.
The Past is Not a Predictor of the Future.
Just ask Nokia and Blackberry. But that doesn’t mean you can ignore it. So, let’s end on a happy note and chat about trends. Namely, what we’ve seen in 2016 that (we believe) will continue in 2017.
Sometimes it’s good to be both lucky and smart. We’ve sold lots and lots and lots of charging tables and stations in 2016 by tapping into a design need. Exhibitors want charging options that don’t look like they stole them from the airport. They have to blend into the exhibit or event environment.
Charging stations say to clients, “Come into the booth and linger. Let’s talk about your business needs.” If you are a fishbowl exhibitor, then a charging option may not make sense, except for your staff. Which is OK too.
Rental Displays are the fastest growing division of Classic Exhibits Inc. That’s not going to change in 2017. Exhibitors are looking for financial and design flexibility. Quality rentals are no longer a compromise either for the exhibitor or for the exhibit sales professional. And truth be told, there’s far more money to be made on repeat rentals than on a purchase.
When a client enters your door, your first question should be, “Are you looking to purchase or rent?” You can’t lose if you offer both at the get-go.
I’m not telling you anything you don’t know. Lightboxes are on fire! Well, you know what I mean. What you may not realize is that LED lighting has become a hot add-on for counters, workstations, monitor stands, even perimeter graphics as well. The price is reasonable, and the visual effect is amazing.
We’ve become experts at RGB programmable LED lights. Tune them to the right color to match a logo or let them dance through the color spectrum.
The change is noticeable. We are seeing a double-digit uptick in orders in events, retail, and corporate environments. The event business is evenly divided between rentals and purchase. Corporate environments and retail are all purchases, evenly divided between custom builds and SEG solutions. We would all be naive to think this trend is slowing any time soon.
Is it just me or is there a lot more rental furniture on the trade show floor? I asked several Exhibit Appointed Contractors (EAC) last summer to estimate the percentage of booths with rental furniture. I expected them to say 20-30 percent. They told me 70-95%. Yowsa!
About 5 months ago, we partnered with CORT to add two Rental Furniture Galleries to Exhibit Design Search. We recognized that Classic distributors could make money on rental furniture by adding it to EDS with retail prices. Every time you don’t use it, you are giving money away to the General Service Contractors. Like they need any more money. Sheesh!
I hope you enjoyed these 25 tips. I know I did. Look for three new charging stations in Design Monday this week.
Have a terrific weekend.
–Mel White
mel@classicexhibits.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
https://twitter.com/melmwhite
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You Love Your Children Equally.
But you have a favorite, even if just a little. Yesterday, we talked about the Top 5. Today, we discuss five online children who deserve more love and attention.
Glenna Martin, our Graphic Design Manager, is the genius behind the Graphic Inspiration Galleries. She knows, as do you, that most graphic designers rarely tackle 3D graphic design. They understand print and web, but designing for a display is a foreign language. Glenna lends a hand.
She created four galleries from Past Five Day photos. In each gallery, she describes why a graphic is successful. There are over one hundred examples. All positive. It’s a wonderful instructional playground for any graphic designer.
In the old days, every exhibit manufacturer had a top-secret distributor section. It was the vault of prices, literature, policies, etc. Those days are largely gone. However, we still have a condensed version where you can find literature, forms, and other helpful tools. It also contains a link to the Rental Gallery wholesale prices. So, how secret is it? Here’s the username (classicexhibits) and password (easypeasy). But don’t share!
At the top of the Classic home page, there is a rotating banner. If you click on it at just the right time, you will be taken to a magical page where you can download printable literature. This includes 22 product and “Under” brochures. I’m not opposed to using guilt as a motivator. So… You’ll hurt my feelings if you don’t click on this link.
The “Hear Audio” buttons are my baby. Most kits have a Hear Audio button where you can listen to a 30-60 second description of the product. All are done by professional voice talent. Ditto on the “hurt feelings” if you don’t click on them.
Trade Show Tips is a happening place, much like a middle child who wants attention. End-users find it via Google or Bing. I often hear from newbies in the industry who tap into it as their “Introduction to Trade Shows and Trade Show Marketing.” And like the Trade Show Tales blog, new articles are added to keep it fresh. We encourage you to suggest article ideas.
Wondering about the latest trends in Trade Show Land? Check out #21 thru #25 tomorrow.
–Mel White
mel@classicexhibits.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
https://twitter.com/melmwhite
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Finding the Right Tool is a Blessing.
What tools do your fellow distributors use on the Classic Exhibits website? Here are the Top 5. Some may surprise you.
I know. Duh? With EDS, you can search for kits (VK-1234), features (shelves), and products (Aero). Just as helpful is Advanced Search, a link below the Search box. Advanced Search allows you to further narrow your search by a price range, product line, and feature (i.e., monitors). You can also sort by lowest to highest prices, newest designs, and even alphabetically.
There is no EDS tool more powerful than My Gallery. Often imitated, never duplicated. Tips #12 – #15 could be just on My Gallery. My Gallery lets you build a listing that includes not only kits, but also photos and articles. Imagine being a client who gets a My Gallery link with kit renderings, kit photos, and articles on successful trade show marketing. That’s a very powerful consultative message.
I urge you to use the URL tool in My Gallery. It’s the easiest way to share ideas from your personal email address and branded EDS site.
Search for Setup Instructions = INSTANT SMILE. There’s no happier tool on the Classic Exhibits website. For ten years, we’ve loaded all setup instructions into a database. At the same time, we’ve told your customers where to find their instructions using stickers on their setup instructions booklets, cases, and crates.
No need to panic on Sunday morning in Las Vegas or Orlando. Simply enter the URL into your phone, tablet, or laptop and type in the five-digit order number. Voila! The PDF of the instructions. We are baffled why every manufacturer doesn’t do this.
“Are you kidding me? That’s brilliant!” That’s the typical response when we describe Peek-a-Booth to new Classic Distributors. But you don’t have to be a newbie to appreciate Peek-a-Booth. We have five webcams mounted in our shop: (3) in the purchase setup and (2) in the rental setup. These are pan and zoom webcams. Perfect for previewing your order before it ships.
Save your client the time and effort of having to ship their display to your facility for a preview. Let Peek-a-Booth be the preview. Ask a PM for the username and password. Then guard it with your life!
What’s the difference between Exhibit Specials and Lightning Deal? Exhibit Specials are multiple kits at promotional prices for two months. The key — “two months.” The Lightning Deal is an aggressively priced kit on sale for two weeks. Just one kit. Again, the key — “two weeks.” We don’t email you when we make the updates. They just happen. We figure you get enough emails from us already. Both the Specials and the Deal are in EDS.
Done. Feel free to grunt like Tim “The Toolman” Taylor on Home Improvement. You deserve it.
Tomorrow, five “Underutilized Gems” you’ll love like your middle child. Tips #16-20.
–Mel White
mel@classicexhibits.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
https://twitter.com/melmwhite
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Welcome Back!
Today, we stroll through the colorful history of our product names. We’ll even touch on the funky Classic Exhibits logo. Don’t scoff. It’s more interesting than you think.
Six years ago, all SEG-type displays were in Visionary Designs. We got tired of searching for them in VD whenever you requested an SEG design so we created SEGUE. Obviously, the SEG in SEGUE stands for silicone edge graphics, but did you know that segue, like in a movie, means the transition from one scene to another? Or in our case, from one product line to another. Seamlessly.
I know it’s hard to pronounce, and I’m sorry. When we developed Sacagawea during the Great Recession, we wanted to continue an “explorer” naming system, like Magellan. It seemed clever at the time. Unfortunately, we soon realized that most explorers have “issues” (think Balboa, Pizarro, Cortes, etc.).
My wife suggested Sacagawea, a resourceful and invaluable guide who accompanied Lewis and Clark. Since the new line was lightweight, durable, practical, and adaptable, it made sense. Honestly, I still think it makes sense, and it’s the only product line in our industry named after a woman.
Gravitee was born from multiple intense R&D sessions in 2015 where we mined our past product successes to create a new modular panel system. The elegant clips from Euro LT, the 180° hinge from Intro, the MODUL locking system, and our familiarity with custom wood construction. We realized that connecting the panels was as easy as letting gravity do the work. The Newton and apple tree concept came along for the ride. As for the spelling… blame marketing.
No idea since the lines predate me. That said… they are most self-explanatory, except for the weird fixation with ending in “O.” FYI — There was a Euro before there was a Euro LT.
I am told it was created by a design agency on the East Coast. Kevin loves the Classic logo. I’ve grown to (mostly) love it over the years as we’ve made subtle changes. If nothing else, it’s iconic.
Eleven years ago and about seven months after accepting the job at Classic, I mentioned the logo to a distributor who said they liked how the “C” crested the “E.” To be honest, I had never noticed the “C” before in the logo. Now suddenly it made sense! Before that, I just thought it resembled Marvin the Martian.
OK, maybe it wasn’t quite as interesting as I promised, but it’s not like you’ve never been disappointed in a story.
Hump day tomorrow with #11 thru #15.
–Mel White
mel@classicexhibits.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
https://twitter.com/melmwhite
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